


A Hat in Time: Julia's Return

by Konan720



Series: AHiT Series [2]
Category: A Hat in Time (Video Game)
Genre: F/M, slow start, the adventure continues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-19
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-02-27 07:53:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 34
Words: 98,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22323622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Konan720/pseuds/Konan720
Summary: Description: Four years have passed; four years Julia spent trying to find her way back to the wonderful, crazy world she called home. Julia has promises to keep, and she doesn't intend to break them. (Slow start; OC bound, and DLC time, guys!)Sequel to: A Hat in Time: Amnesiac's Journey
Relationships: OC/OC
Series: AHiT Series [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2075592
Comments: 16
Kudos: 72





	1. Mundane Cycle

**Author's Note:**

> Here we go guys! The sequel to AHiT: Amnesiac's Journey is a go! I'm still not sure I want it to be called Julia's Return but I still trying to think, if I don't forget it. Cover picture is also a work in progress so that might change later too!
> 
> Thank you guys for all your wonderful comments in the previous book and I hope you enjoy this one as well!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go, guys! The sequel to AHiT: Amnesiac's Journey is a go! I'm still not sure I want it to be called Julia's Return but I still trying to think, if I don't forget it. The cover picture is also a work in progress so that might change later too!
> 
> Thank you guys for all your wonderful comments in the previous book and I hope you enjoy this one as well!
> 
> Help keep an eye out for any errors as I'll be checking through this as well!

**(Chapter one: mundane cycle)**

Out a spacious window, that was only slightly covered by an old styled curtain, the sun rose. Birds chirping and busy people talking, walking and riding. The occasional annoyed driver honking their horn at the slow passerby. A pillow covered a person's face, bundled up in a warm blank; it stirred as their phone rung a blaring tune.

A groan escaped them and huddled more into their slightly comfortable bed. Sadly, the alarm had already woken them up. Rising, with massive bed head, the person got to work; their daily routine. Get up, take a shower, brush teeth, comb hair and tie up.

Get dressed, and wipe the small mirror to see themselves. Familiar orange hair all tightly pulled together and an emerald eye staring back. Julia sighed; reaching for an eye patch to cover her left eye.

She was ready, her job awaits her. Grabbing her apartment key, she locked the door behind her. Walked down the large hallways to many other residents she shared this building with; waved to the mother and their child who lived right next to her.

The day was bright as she walked out the main entrance of her building and located her motorbike; once her helmet was on, she drove to work without trouble.

The 'Quicksilver and Go' was a mechanic and fuel stop with a quick convenient store to make the place complete; Julia opened the door to alternative rock playing and two of her co-workers goofing off as they restock the shelves. One stayed ever so vigilant at the cashier station, book in hand and studying.

"Juli!" Two of the Co-works yelled in unison, making the third look up with a smile.

"Hey, guys" Julia smiled, she quite liked working here; not to mention-

This was her Aunt and Uncle's business.

"Little cousin, always fashionably late!" One of her three older cousins replied, a smile on his face.

"Travis, didn't Uncle Eddy say not to throw goods around the shop?" Julia put her hands on her hips making the man who was literally thirty years old nervously chuckle and back away to disarm the conversation. "You too, Tucker."

The second, Tucker, who stayed behind the shelve they were stacking, slowly dipped down like they were walking downstairs. The girl giggled, watcher, her older cousins act like complete dorks; her favorite triplets. The only triplets she knew actually.

"Honestly, Tanner is the only sensible one out of you two," Julia adjusted her tucked in uniform shirt and joined Tanner behind the counter; taking a quick look at the book he was reading- apparently he was studying arithmetic. Smart boy. Yet chooses to act like an idiot.

Julia can get behind that.

These boys she's spent four years with now have, honestly? Made her life a little better. No longer in contact with her father; Mother started a new family, the right way, and turns out Julia even got a new little stepbrother she hasn't even seen yet.

Life was good here; it made her feel guilty that she wanted to leave. After the events with Melody and the other? Julia wanted nothing but to go back. It was her chosen home after all.

She sighed, assisting a customer who had stepped in to buy a few things; when they left, her two cousins who've finished restocking decided to rough house with those styrofoam swords; you know? The ones for kids. The really badly made ones-

Snap

"Oh, crackers."

Tanner, Travis, and Julia laughed at Tucker; all the while their Father, Julia's uncle, walked in. Mid pause as he was wiping his hands with an oily rag, eye twitching. "Son. That is the third sword you've broken this week."

Tucker scratched his head, he knew it was coming out of his pay; not a lot, but it was still hilarious.

* * *

That was the everyday work cycle Julia went through, made enough money to pay for her apartment and what she only needed, she watched her cousins blissfully go through life. Every day, she smiled, enjoying their company.

But when the day was up, and she returned to her home, she ate dinner, brushed her teeth and removed her day clothes to wear her comfy overly sized ones. She sat on her bed; you probably wonder what she'd really been doing over the four years of her return?

Well, she looked for a way back.

Not actively, oh no; this town of her's was way too big. Searching every nook and cranny was possibly dangerous. Most likely dangerous! No- she spent almost every night on her bed; concentrating. Legs crossed, slowly breathing, Julia held her hands slightly together, leaving a gap.

Every night she used her ability; it turns out, they never left her. Her hair tie glowed bright, an indicator that she was using what she had. She searched and searched, trying to feel any form of crack- a weak link, anything!

She would do this every night until her head stung, and arms hurt; she strained herself every night for four years just to find her way home.

And after four years, after four long years-

Something finally pinged back.

The girl gasped, raising her eye patch to look out the window; her left eye glowing and broken.

Yet, she could see that this was real.

Keeping this feeling in mind, she finally went to sleep.

* * *

The next day, the same routine; wake up, get ready, go to work. Watch cousins goof around, but today seemed off.

Julia sat there, at the counter; her cousins actually working for once as they were trusted to watch the shop on their own; Mechanic section closed for today as the two adults in their sixty, yeah, sixty. Julia's Aunt and Uncle were in surprisingly good shape; this shop had been in their family for generations- you'd have to be fit in order to work on hefty parts every day.

"You would not believe what happened yesterday!" Travis started a conversation, moping the floors; the three in the shop had full attention, Travis smiled like a child given candy "My boyfriend asked me to marry him!"

"Holy, shit!" Julia slammed her hands down on the table; her mouth looked like it was going to rip apart from her smile as Travis's two siblings came running up to him, lifting him up like a sack of flour.

They cheered, breaking the silence as some people who were shopping in the back clapped their hands overhearing them. This was news, wonderful news!

"Congratulations, man!" Tanner patting his brother back as Tucker roughed up Travis's red-dyed hair.

The three were off in their own little bubble as Julia smiled grew softer. She was really happy for him! He and his boyfriend, now fiancé, had been together for almost ten years.

Time passed and the store slowed; not many costumers came in between past noon and the evening. Travis left early to go plan their wedding for the incoming months. It was just her, Tanner and Tucker now.

The lights from outside turned on, it was almost time for Julia to leave; Tanner was counting the shelves and Tucker watched TV. The bell rung informing that the door opened, a late shopper it seemed.

"Good evening, please take-" Julia looked up from the random pamphlets she was reading; She never expected to see him again.

"Ah! Julia, my dear!" Gabriele stood tall, almost prideful that he was here "been awhile... How have you been?"

Julia was at loss for words; she stuttered and gaped- she couldn't find her words! He was here! Gabriele was here!

..-Oh no, Gabriele was here!

"Tucker, get the beatin stick!" Tanner yelled out in a panic, as Tucker quickly tossed a, rather large, stick that they had found outside a long while back. It had served as a repellent for raccoons, shoplifters and the occasional creep that tried to talk to their baby cousin.

Normally they'd worn a person before using self-defense; however, they didn't know what the hell Gabriele was. He looked like a man, that much was obvious, but they could also see the stitches engraved on him, holding himself together.

Also, if that wasn't the case, who walked around in a plague doctor suit in the twenty-first century?

They managed to hit him once, Gabriele flinched back, but then grabbed the stick firmly- giving a look at Tanner, who was visibly shaken. "Hello, yes; is this how you greet all your people?" Gabriele asked sarcastically "or am I the lucky one?"

He turned to Julia who was still trying to form words "these friends of yours?"

"..Cousins.. actually-" Julia finally came too, even if it was slow.

"Juli- you know this.. thing..?" Tucker was holding a can of pringles, ready to throw at the doctor.

"Yeah- I.. yeah." Julia confirmed, still not sure how to make of the situation, "he's my-"

"Friend." Gabriele finished off.

"Your... Friend." Tanner yanked the stick out of Gabriele's hand, backing off and getting next to Julia behind the counter. "You uh... you have interesting taste."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Julia mildly glared at him, but shook her head "he's helped me out a couple of times.. he's.. he's good."

"You're being awfully vague about this, cousin.," Tucker stated

"Can I- can I have a word with you?" Julia said, strained her smiled and looked at Gabriele "Outside."

"Oh! Of cour-" Gabriele was about to finish but was tugged on a little bit too hard, Leaving the two older cousins to watch the windows like hawks. Making sure this man wasn't about to abduct their little Julia. Their conversation was muffled by the glass.

"Gabriele, I'm happy to see you!" She smiled sweetly, then yelled as her emotions took a one-eighty "but what the hell were you thinking?!" She pushed his chest, making him look down at her, head tilted.

"What do you mean?" He asked

"I mean! Why would you come walking in while those two were still with me!" She huffed "you could have waited for me or something!"

"...I'm guessing you haven't told them yet-"

"I haven't told anyone yet! Never planned too!" She held her hands up. "People would throw me in the loony house if I started spouting nonsense about time manipulation and real magic!"

The two inside watched their little Julia tell off the large man; watching him visibly duck his head down. She was actually scary when she was angry nowadays. Maybe they don't have to.. worry. The two boys looked at each other and shrugged, that guy was suffering her wrath now. It was almost comical with it being all muffled, and how short she was compared to him.

"You planned on leaving without a word, didn't you-" Gabriele assumed, and he was right as the girl stopped waving her hands around like a mad person; it was quiet.

"No, not yet; I would have told them I'd be moving to another country or something." Julia quietly said.

"What if they tried to contact you?"

Julia was at a loss now; what was she going to do? She never actually thought that far. She was so used to people not caring- now they care too much.

She was asked if she could make it to her cousin's wedding after all.

"...We'll save this for.. another time, it seems like you still need to think." Gabriele said; lifting her chin, he continued "but know this- I've come to bring you home."

Julia's breath hitched in her throat; what was this feeling? She stepped away, a reassuring smile on her face.

"Thank you."

* * *

Julia entered the shop again, her two cousins looked at her as she gathered her stuff to return to her apartment; Tanner elbowed Tucker for him to say something, and the first thing he asked was-

"Was he your boyfriend?"

Julia stopped midway, her brain tried clicking together what he had just said...

All she could say was "wha-?"


	2. The Choice

**(Chapter two: The Choice)**

_Beep, beep_

The annoying phone started up again; Julia had forgotten to turn her phone's alarm off. Stirring in the bed she faced up looking at the ceiling; the Saturday that was always her off day became a little more active. She groaned;

"It wasn't a dream.."

Slowly making her way off the bed she looked at herself in the mirror; eye patch misplaced on her head. Adjusting herself, Julia got ready for the day. Making her way out of her small bedroom, Julia was caught off guard.

"A lovely place you have here-"

Julia screamed

Not only did Julia have the hell scared out of herself by her oh so favorite doc, but the badge seller as well; The two casually sitting down in her living room. It was unnerving, but Julia also realized that she screamed in a semi-public area; taking quick action, Julia chucked a sandal that was nearby at a wall.

With that situation ending in her next-door neighbor to come knocking at her residence; Turning down the hall that isolated itself away from the living room, she opened the door without fear of anyone seeing the doll plague doctor and the mangled twitching man sitting down.

"Hey, everything alright?" Her neighbor, a nice man who she knew by the name of Gerald wore a concerned face; Julia replied-

"Yeah! Totally! Just another roach on the wall, aha-" She scratched her head "No matter how clean you keep a place, they're always around!" Laughing nervously, the man took it as a sign she was still shaken from the encounter- he personally understood this because Gerald has entomophobia. Without another question, he smiled and returned to whatever work he was doing before the loud bang at an ungodly hour.

Julia will agree it was very inconsiderate to those who are trying to sleep, but she had to cover her scream somehow. "No more surprises please.." she mutters, closing the door. Making her way back into the living room, Julia talked in a quiet voice.

"What the heck are you guys doing here?!" She looked at the two, who were looking in her direction when she came back "How the hell did you get into my house?!"

"To be quite frank, I'm not even sure how I got here," Gabriele said, turning his head to look at the badge seller, it was so... strange to see him in this world; Gabriele thought not of it because he'd been with this man for so long- but he was here, in this normal, nonanimated world he was so used to seeing.

He was technical.. home as well now.

"You did an excellent job in giving us your location, Julia," the badge seller said, of course ignoring all questions thrown at him. "Rest assured, I'll be able to assist you in your return."

"Missed you too, ya twitching lunatic.." Julia gave a side smirk.

All you could hear from him was a low chuckle as he stood up. "Say your goodbyes quickly; this will be a one-way trip this time."

"Well, that's nice to know-" Julia scoffed "like it would have been nice to know that I wasn't actually dying when I was literally becoming particles of light."

"That's what happens to things that don't belong, didn't you know?" The twitching man had said this in a way that sounded rude but held no ill intent towards her, but whatever signals he was sending, she didn't receive, ending in her giving him a rather sour face.

"By morning tomorrow, the rift that we had come through will be closed;" He tapped his cane down to grab her attention further "grab what you need, for this ride will be.. very unstable."

"I've ridden through the unstable dimensional rift before with Moon; I can handle it," Julia replied. With a hum, and a quick blink of the eye, he was gone; as usual. But Gabriele was still present "Yeah- sure. Don't tell me where I need to go; that's totally fine."

"Julia; are you still planning on leaving without a word?" Gabriele quietly asked "You should at least say something to your cousins..-" he turned his head to look out the still covered window "they care very much about you."

"I know.."

* * *

It was a nice calm day; quiet, like nature, knew what was going to happen. A departure of a loved one was always a sad moment; Julia sat waiting in the old park she and her cousins used to play in when they were younger. It's long since forgotten, and flora had taken back some of the man-made structure.

"It's cold today" Julia mumbled, moving back and forth on a swing slowly. Taking a long-needed breath, she looked up at the everlasting light blue with a tint of orange.

"You still have that old hoodie?" The girl heard off in the distance, she didn't even hear the car pull up. Her three cousins leisurely strolled up to her, warm drinks in hand; Travis handed her one as well.

"Yeah- it was one of a good few things I had.." Julia mumbled, taking a nice sip of her drink, Matcha hot drinks from Starbucks was always good even if she always burnt her tongue. "Sorry to call you guys out here during our free day."

"Hey, no biggy!" Tucker said, sitting down on the swing next to her "besides, been wanting to see this place for a while now; the park hadn't aged that well-"

"What was it you need to talk about anyway, Juli?" Tanner asked, question in his eyes, "was it about that.. strange guy yesterday..?"

Julia chuckled, in a sense, it kind of was.. but not entirely. She kicked back and forth slowly once more wondering how to start things off. "Well, yes- but no." She sighed "you see, I can't tell you the full story; you'd probably not believe me." She looked ahead for a while, catching a glimpse of a few turkeys walking.

"But I guess it doesn't matter though, because I know it's real.." She looked back to her cousins, who are now all looked at her. "I've.. connected with a few people; we were like.. an actual family... A father, a mother.. even a little sister.."

They looked on, wanting her to continue, where was she going with this?

"I was... I was really happy being with them when suddenly I had to leave." Julia pulled her hoodie up kicked her legs again "I had made a promise that I'd come back to them.."

"So.. you plan on leaving? Where too?" Travis asked

"Who are these people? They sound nice!" Tucker asked

"...Will you be coming back..?" Tanner asked his question, looking at her face; He knew something was up.

The last question made everyone quiet again. They waited for her to talk again, and as Julia looked up at all three of her older cousins she said without hesitation,

"No, I won't be coming back."

This was something she wanted to do for a long time, to return to everyone back in that cartoony world where reality made no sense to her. The adventure, the journey, everything.

"Is that strange man making you say these things? Because that's nuts!" Tucker said, looking at her like she grew another head. "You're just gonna run off?"

"Tucker, calm down.." Travis said, looking at his brother "at least she's telling us; she could have just said nothing."

"These people really mean that much to you, huh?" Tanner said, never breaking eye contact with Julia.

She nodded, taking a breath "that's why I called you guys; the only ones who still actually care about me here." She stood up, and turned to all of them "I want you guys to know, I love you all so, very much." She choked on her words but cleared her throat "but, me leaving is something I need to do.."

Without a second thought the group pulled together; a tight hug. Tears stung her eyes, but she didn't cry; it still hurt to leave but she's made up her mind. This warmth that was around her subsided as they all pulled away, Julia looked up at all of them one more time.

"I wish we could go out and have a few more shenanigans, but it seems this is it," Julia said, a small sad smile on her face.

"Hey, you're old enough to make your own decisions now; don't stay because of us." Tucker said, placing a hand on her head "just... please be careful with that weird guy, and any other strange characters you meet, okay?"

"If you ever do find your way back to us, our doors are always open to you, Juli.," Travis said, following a lead with his brother.

Tanner joined in as well, placing his hand on Julia's head "Don't take shit from no one, yeah?" Making her laugh a little. "And if this is really it, I want you to have something I've held onto.."

Around Tanner's neck, he pulled a locket; hidden from everyone's view until now. Even his two brothers never knew he wore it. He handed it to his little cousin, enclosing her hands around it. "Do me a favor, don't open it until you're long gone, okay?" He winked "It'll have more meaning then."

Julia held tightly to it, nodding her head as she felt like something was watching; turning around slightly she caught a glimpse of Gabriele standing off to the side. Looking up, the girl noticed just how dark it had gotten, but she wasn't the only one who noticed the doctor standing a few ways back.

"That's him..-" Tucker quietly pointed

"Whoa- guys you weren't joking about his looks.." Travis said in awe.

"Hey!" Tanner yelled, grabbed the Doctor's attention "Whatever the hell you are, you better keep our baby cousin safe!" After a short moment the other two chimes in with a few 'yeahs'

From across the field, the could hear, "you have my word." As he slightly bowed his head in acknowledgment.

Travis was at loss for words, as the two other brothers nodded back. One last look at Julia, they all parted ways, but just before they all disappeared behind the car doors, Tanner took one look back;

and smiled.

Julia smiled back, and once the car was cleared from sight, she started walking over to the doctor as he was waiting for her. "I'm assuming it went well?"

"As well as goodbyes can be," Julia answered

Gabriele nodded, turning around to walk away, "come now, I've gotten new from Benjamin; he said to meet him at a place called Star-view Point."

Julia stopped and gasped "I knew where that is!"

* * *

Julia had been riding on her motorbike with Gabriele holding on tight to her. This vehicle was a lot faster then the child's he'd seen, seems in the time of Julia's absence, she was learning how to drive this mechanical contraption. It almost scared him to be on it.

Once they arrived at their destination, the sun had long set, and the city lights had started to spark on; each area of the town came to life as they walked to the edge to get a better look. It had been so long since Julia had been here, she was incredibly happy to have found out this place had, even more, meaning when she and her grandfather had come here.

When she and Moon have come here.

She held tightly to the locket around her neck, almost wanting to open it, but not yet- she hadn't left yet. "Seems like we've arrived earlier than Benjamin expected.." Gabriele hummed out "he's already been here by now.."

"That's fine," Julia whispered, "if it means I get to see this place one last time, I wouldn't mind."

"Such a marvelous view.." Gabriele noted, he was happy to see how the world fared after the event of the plague- but then again; by the accents and look of the residents, this was located in America, not England or France. "Such.. development.."

Julia hummed, she was in her own world as she looked off. He turned his head to hers and was finally able to ask something that was bothering him. "Julia, May I ask something of you?"

The girl snapped out of her thoughts as she looked back at him; Face looking directly at him. "It's that.. eye patch. Are you okay?" He approached, grabbing hold of her cheek again. "How did you get hurt?"

Things were getting uncomfortable, but she answered as soon as she broke from his hand "well, it's not entirely from being hurt, it more of a way of hiding something I don't was to show." But for him, she'll make an exception, he's a doctor after all.

Moving her eye patch to the side, Gabriele nearly sputtered out; almost sounded like a choke. "What happened to your eye!?"

"It's uh... I think it happened when I started using my magic too much..?" Julia scratched her head, "it hurt for a while, but now I don't feel pain anymore.."

He grabbed her face, clearly frustrated "That's because you've exerted yourself way too far!" Letting go, he backed off "that's what happens when you use magic you're not used to! It's dangerous, and it damages your physical appearance!"

"Oh.." Julia blinked a couple of times, registering what he was saying "that makes sense actually.."

"Honestly, it would have looked a lot worse if you hadn't used your charm." Gabriele sighed. "On the bright side, you are now capable of using magic items to extend your own power."

"As..?" Julia wanted him to continue, this was sounding more interesting.

"Like that locket for instance.." he pointed "you can fuse it with your own magic to assist you.."

"Like Melody's hats!" Julia smiled

"Precisely!" He confirmed, "each charm has their intended use, your hair tie gave you the ability to use barriers, shields.."

"I can also make strings..-" Gabriele nearly froze as he heard this. He knew this, he had taken the brunt of that attack when she went berserk. The doctor was honestly hoping that she wouldn't find out about it. "Hey.. you okay..?"

"Ah, yes.." Gabriele shook his head "that would be your raw energy; What you are capable of using without charms.. but as stated, is dangerous." He looked at her, serious air surrounding him as he talked "be mindful of how you use it, it could not only damage the user but others as well."

In the distance, he could see his old friend stumbling across to them, Gabriele waved "well then, we can talk more about this matter later.." the badge seller had approached the two, looking at them.

"Apology for the wait, I had not realized that this place was familiar to you." The Badge Seller said, taking another look at Julia as she placed her eye patch back on "Ah- that however looks familiar to me.."

It then clicked with the girl, an explanation of why the badge seller looked like he did! Magic exertion! He must have used a lot of magic to get away from Moon.. to hide him and Gabriele at the same time. Which would also explain why Gabriele knew so much about this topic-

"So, you're not taking anything with you?" The twitching man looked around, Julia snapped her finger

"No- I am!" She quickly added "I just need to bring my motorbike over; I have at least one bag strapped to it..-" with this Julia hurried to grab her belongings.

The badge seller looked at Gabriele knowingly "She knows now, doesn't she?"

"The fact that She is now able to magic to a point is interesting now.." Gabriele folded his hands behind his back "however, she had damaged her left eye greatly.. yet she can still see through it."

"I wonder; what other magic charms will she unlock on this new journey..?" The badge seller questioned, "how will she acquire them?"

"As long as she keeps her emotions and raw energy in check, I would like to witness this first hand.." Gabriele mumbled as Julia slowly started coming back.

"You'll be joining her?" The badge seller asked

"For now.." was the doctor's reply.

Julia had returned next to the two, a smile on her face, looking back and forth and then to the city below. This was happening, she was going to return back to the world she searched so hard for.

"So, where's the portal?" She asked.

"We jump for it." The badge seller turned to her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter two, incoming! a little explanation near the end of how Julia is going to work; She has a few options with her now that she knows how to use magic to a point, but she also carries another weapon that I'll introduce later on!


	3. Troubled Travels

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter got a little crazy, Julia had a lot of other things to do than just work on magic; but also her courage and driving skills with her vehicle-

**(Chapter Three: Troubled travels)**

"What?" Julia looked at the man, did she hear that right?

"We have to jump," he pointed over the edge "The rift is on a level with the cliff, but it floats just beyond.." the badge seller explained as Gabriele threw a rock into the barely noticeable ripples in space.

"Will you have difficulties traveling with your machine?" Gabriele asked, looked at her motorbike.

"Not unless I use my barriers as a road." Julia smiled, making walls as flooring had been quite easy when she needed to take short cuts around town. Though, it was much harder to hide from prying eyes. Now, she won't have to worry where she's going.

"Ah, creative!" Gabriele sounded happy, "I guess I will be riding with you then?" He turned to the badge seller, question in mind that he probably already has the answer to "Will you be traveling with us, or will we meet you there as always?"

"If you do not mind, I will be going off on my own." The badge seller taped his cane "you can take this time to explain a.. certain situation... that's has occurred.."

"Situation?" Julia questioned, but the man was already gone "damn it!"

"Yes, you'd think you would get used to this by now.." Gabriele replied. "But, even I get frustrated by his sudden departures.."

Julia hopped onto her bike, motioning for the doctor to get on. "Well, hop aboard; what's this situation?" She asked as he made his way over and got on; Julia looked ahead and said one last thing "I swear to god if we drop, I will be very angry."

Revving the engine to make sure it wasn't going to fail, Julia and Gabriele took a leap of faith. As the bike sped up off the dirt, it's wheeling reached air;

They suddenly found themselves falling into the rift.

Quickly, Julia's charm glowed; a green opaque floor appeared below them and the drove off. The rift was just as Julia remembered it- trippy as all hell and broken. At least the way was much more clear. She'd personally not suffer another amnesiac episode via a concussion.

"You've learned to use your barriers without your hands?!" Gabriele shouted over the engine.

"Sorta!" Julia shouted back "without my hands, it was still pretty thin! Something could break it if I'm not careful!"

"With all this ruble, that's very reassuring!" Gabriele was dripping sarcasm, that wasn't reassuring at all-! What if something comes along and brakes the floor!?

"So, I'll ask again!" Julia wanted to change the matter at hand "what's this situation? It must be something important for me to know!"

Gabriele sighed, not sure how to say it, but blunt would be the best choice "Zephyr has broken loose from his realm!"

The doctor couldn't see it, but Julia had made a face, probably one that looks like great terror and mass confusion. "That's not possible!" She yelled back "Melody obliterated the guy in my dream realm! How's he still alive!?"

"Julia, my dear; this man is known for his illusions!" He announced, but wasn't expecting a reply-

When he did, he was greeted by laughter.

It wasn't Julia's.

Not wanting to even stop, Julia sped up faster; she knew that laugh, she didn't ever want to hear it again. Never again. Seem like many folks know how to travel through space-time as well- it's feeling a lot less special.

"Oh god, oh no-" Julia started panicking, the road ahead was starting to get a little bit unstable; she nor the doc knew where the jester was, but he was here and probably not far.

"Well, well, well; the Diamond and the Heart traveling together?" Zephyr laughed out "we feel left out!"

Yellow rectangular shrapnel came speeding towards the floor; taking a risky move, Julia let go of the handles, moved her body forward and held her hands out quickly. She raised a side wall temporarily, and once the shrapnel hit it was deflected.

Putting her hands back on the handles, Gabriele shouted: "What was that!?" He was referring to the stunt she had preform.

"I did tricks in my spare time-!" She replied, "if I didn't have a passenger, I would have been able to lie flat down!"

"You're insane!" The doc was sacred for her.

"I know!" Julia smiled.

Overhead, Zephyr flew; he wanted to toy with them more, and watching the stunt that could have thrown the two off the edge, made him want to see more! What is the contraption she controlled, was it alive? Did it feel? Could. It. Die?

So many things he wanted to know, so little time to find out! He laughed out loud again "wondering, wonderful!"

"Doc, we have to take a detour!" Julia shouted, looking away behind the rubble ahead, "I know it sounds bad, but I can't keep this up much longer!"

"Do what you need to do!" He held tighter to her waist, bracing for the worst.

With that being a 'go' from him, she drove off course and the floor disappeared. Using what she could, she drove through rubble, crevasse, anything she could use to get away from the mad doll. The majority of the ride was unpleasant, and the rift drive from here was even more unstable-

Different portals started opening up, showing different worlds; some colliding with each other for a short unnoticeable moment. She was so distracted by this, that she wasn't expecting a portal to open up in front of her;

She drove through, and when she kept driving, she noticed something familiar about the place-

It was Subcon!

But she didn't stop; this wasn't her world she was trying to reach- No, no, it didn't feel right. The world seemed like it slowed down when she locked eyes with a boy up ahead. black hair, red shirt, and blue shorts; that was all she saw as she darted back into another portal, never seeing the boy again.

Once back into the space rift, it seemed like the situation cooled off; they could ride a little more through the rubble just to be safe. Once back into the open, Julia let out a sigh of relief. How much farther she wondered. She never thought she ever go on a road trip with her motorbike.

"There! Up ahead!" Gabriele pointed out a specific portal "see that gold and green portal?!"

"Yeah!?" Julia shouted back

"That's home!" He sounded happy, the portal was in eye range, but they still had a ways to go.

Though, that happiness was short-lived; a surprise attack from below had knocked the two off course, getting Gabriele loose and fall off the bike. Julia took evasion maneuvering and wall displacement to spiral down like one of those stunt riders in a ball; then she free fell while releasing her magic that the doctor feared most.

Julia summoned her strings to grip around the plague doctor and twirl him back up to her; "I ain't losing you now, Gabe; hold on tight!" She yelled, looking at him with great determination.

Something in his head clicked. But that thought was for a different moment in time; right now Julia tried driving her way back up while Gabriel was literally riding bridal style in front of her as he was locked in between her forearms. The man was huge, so keeping him in place wasn't a problem; holding him for long was.

The sudden pose was enough to catch the mad jester off guard, it was comical; too comical. The two could hear him laughing harder. Such a small person holding another who was incredibly bigger then the other was always funny, and Zephyr knew how prideful the leader of Hearts was.

It was a good enough distraction, with it, they were able to reach their given destination before a larger piece of debris cane flying at the two. Once they disappeared, so did the portal; leaving Zephyr to find another way to get to them once he stopped laughing.

* * *

**Current active Characters of mine:**

_Julia/Fedora_

_Gabriele/Leader of Hearts (Friend?)_

_Zephyr/?/Leader of Spades (Local_ _psychopath)_

 **Guess** **appearance:**

_Tie (from A Hat and Tie in Time)_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Julia nearly got herself killed pulling off stupid stunts.


	4. Welcome back!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! The last chapter for now, I'll probably start working on the others, but I'm definitely going to take a break for a bit. Enjoy!

**(Chapter Four: Welcome back!)**

Like a scene from a movie, the portal the two traveled through opened up and spat them out, leaving both Julia and Gabriele to have a rough landing. The bike threw them off as it skidded a couple of feet away; they rolled in different directions and then everything stopped.

It was quiet once more besides Julia breathing in and out due to having a near-death experience once again. The adrenaline was there but once they just laid on the cold flooring of tile for a while, it was all right again.

"Well, That was.. that happened." Gabriele spoke up, not wanting to move "I don't have any bones and yet- I feel like something is broken." He turned his head to look at the woman, she hadn't said a word not attempted to move "Are you alright, Julia?"

"Who's Julia..?" She mumbled

"Oh, heavens-!" Gabriele had gotten worried but immediately stopped fretting over her body to realize that she was holding back a laugh. "You little scoundrel!" He flicked her cheek, it's painful sting got her to sit up; but she still laughed.

" _Ow_!" She smiled "it was a joke!"

"A very poor one!" He yelled "this is serious! You could have lost your memories. again!"

"At least that proves you're really worried about me.." she still smiled, Julia then looked around, Her Motorbike still in one piece; scratched up, but there.

Standing up, Julia tried to make her way over to the bike but was met with vertigo and pain in her left eye. She hissed out, needing to crouch back down. Gabriele was instantly by her side.

"Are you all right?" He was unsure if he wanted to touch her; scared he'd make it worse

"Just a little drained, and my eye.." Julia's mentality noted that this happens when you use to much magic, especially her raw magic. "I'll be okay, I'm just glad I didn't lose you in the rift. It was worth it."

"Ah.. yes; thank you for that.. by the way.." Gabriele calmed down, looking at her. She sure has grown.. not personality-wise; she's still crazy. But her skill was rather interesting to behold.

"I'm also glad the strings didn't snap.." Julia looked at her hand "normally they'd snap if I attempted to carry anything over the weight of a soda can-"

"Ah." The doc kept looking at her

"Not saying your heavy or anything!" She waved her hand around frantically "I'm just saying you're tall, and there's a lot of fluff in there-!"

The two just stared at each other, a moment passed before Julia's blank stare cracked into a smile and started giggling. Not because of the awkward silence, but because Gabriele himself started chuckling. The two hugged each other and Gabriele just said,

"We're alive!"

* * *

Everything was checked out, in the back alley they had landed, Julia took inventory of her belongings. Her clothing, all seemed to change appearance, even the ones she wore now; the woman hadn't even noticed when they landed.

Her clothing was different than before; back then, she had worn a black suit jacket with grey lines, with a grey undershirt, and black suit pants as well. Now? Now, she was wearing the same grey undershirt, a black vest with grey thread trimmings, and the same black suit pants.

Her shoes had stairs the same as well, dark brown with light brown tips and heels.

"Ya know, I kinda like this new look," Julia said, "a lot easier to move around in!" She rolled her arms around and stretched.

"And the hat with the eye patch only adds mystery to it as well," Gabriele spoke up, handing her helmet to her.

She thanked him, taking another look at her things and making sure nothing was broken. Surprisingly, nothing was; scratched seemed to be the only variable outcome. Bike's green paint job scratched, the bag she had was scrapped... nothing she couldn't fix. She'll definitely need more fuel later...

All she needs to do now was rest for a bit. Julia was still drained from using her abilities; at least her eye stopped hurting. Removing her patch she took a look around with both eyes. The woman smiled, Mafia town was just how she remembered it.. maybe a little bit cleaner? Did they clean the place?

A couple of rocks rolled and the two immediately snapped to the sound's direction. She and Gabriele had the same though; where they being watched? Has a Mafia man found them yet?

She'd rather not be in any company right now. Putting her patch back on and acquired her hat, which sadly wasn't an infinite space holder anymore, on her head. If only she had found out sooner, she would have used the space a lot more.

"I'll go take a look around, Julia," The Doctor looked at her "remain here, I'll see if I can bring.. something edible.. for you to eat as well.." he then pointed at her "you still need to rest."

"I ain't complaining no more.." she agreed, plopping herself down on the tile "have fun not being seen."

And as he left, she was alone. Finally taking the time to look at the locket her cousin gave her, she opened it. It had a picture, like all lockets, but this one? It had a picture of all four of them. Little as they were, smiling at the camera with the three older cousins with their hands on her head.

Julia smiled sadly, she looked at her younger self, who was smiling lopsidedly with a missing tooth. It was a 'goodbye'. On the other side next to the picture had two words.

"Together always."

"Y-you're _alive_.." Julia's head snapped up at the sudden voice.

Mustache girl peeked from behind the wall, wide-eyed, "Melody said you died!" She then pointed.

Julia smiled "so she did talk to you after I left!" She waved her hand to gesture her over "come, come!"

At first, Mu was scared, and a little confused; she carefully made her way over to her and sat on the other side of the alleyway. The two had a staredown, nether look at each other with hostility though.

"How are you.." Mu spoke up

"Alive?" Julia huffed, but smiled still "that's easy, I never died!"

"But you just... Vanished!" She raised her arms, "nothing was left of you!"

"I was just returned to where I was anchored.." Julia mumbled, but then spoke up "but I'm back, and I don't plan on going back."

"Why?" The red hooded girl asked, curiosity in her eyes

"Because this place is my home now." Julia never broke her smile when she talked "this place was more of a home than where I was born and raised.." she looked at her locket again "sure, I left some people behind.. but they're still with me.."

Mu just looked at her, not sure what to say, but she didn't want to stop.. it's hard having a conversation when the only people in town hate your guts...

"But enough about me, what's your story? What's happened since I was gone?" Julia asked.

"Well.." Mu thought for while "when you left, Melody stayed for a bit longer to talk with me and the others.." she scratched her cheek "She managed to clear me from anything bad from the others.. but they still hate me a.. lot.."

"Sorry to hear that.." Julia gave her condolences with a nod.

"But.. it wasn't all too bad now; Cooking cat was one of the few people to accept my apology!" She gave a small smile "I've been helping her! And she feeds me... and lets me stay with her.."

She stood up proudly "I-! Know how to cook better than the Mafia now-!"

Julia chuckled, "Good on ya, Kid!"

Mu smiled brightly, but then wondered "..so.. why don't you hate me too..?" She looked at her in the eyes "after what happened, why are you nice to me? We didn't exactly hop on the foot after all.."

"Yeah, that noise stomp can still remember it..-" Mu cringed hearing this.. she remembered that- "But I understand why you were angry, don't get me wrong.."

"You did look like a different Mafia member.." the girl mumbled, "still do.. but you look way cooler than them!"

"And I can use magic!" Julia pointed out

"What!?" Mustache girl gaped at the taller woman "you can use magic!? Wait- yeah! I remember that!" She pointed out, remembering the fight "you can make these glowing walls, right?"

The two talked till the sun went down, Gabriele had returned and Mu hid behind Julia when he approached. He explained that there was a place they could go to stay for a while, but little did they knew it was cooking cats' place!

She had a nice house, a little separated from the Mafia that lived around; when they had found out it was her who was making the food taste good, they gave the cat her very own little place. When the three strolled up to her door in the dead of the night, Cc was absolutely and utterly stunned.

"Hey, mama cat; I'm home.." Julia smiled, looking at the motherly cat

Her reaction was as strong as a family member returning from the military, alive and well; Cc had covered her mouth to try and stop herself from crying out but she still cried.

"Welcome _back_..!"


	5. Next Objective

**(Chapter Five: Next Objective)**

A calm sunny day, it was nice. Julia sat outside soaking in as much of sun as she could while she studied her motorbike once more. The Mafia didn't seem to come this far in the neighborhood despite them always walking around- she found that odd. Julia will have to confront the boss today though, might as well make it a surprise!

"So, you drive this thing?" Mu asked, watching Julia kneeled and held a hand over the large scratch that was on the side of the vehicle, "what happened to it?"

Julia had so many things to think about now, with returning to Mafia Town, Rescuing Moon, worrying about when Zephyr will pop up again. She sighed, looking up at her and nodding "Yeah, worked my butt off trying to get a license for this thing; let alone actually pay for it in general." She then stood up and looked out towards the open sea, the view was nice from here "as for what happened, let's just say we.. had a rough landing.."

"Hmm, okay.. well.." Mustache girl taped her chin "whatcha gonna do now?"

"The main objective;" Julia stood up and held one finger "rescue my dad." She held up another finger "sub objective; find transportation to get to Subcon."

"Whoa, wait!" Mu looked at her with stars in her eyes "you came back for a rescue mission!? Aaand you're dad is here?!"

"Well, he's more of an adopted dad-" But Julia nodded "I came back to see my friends and family again, yes." Then the taller girl was lost in thought, there was one major problem to this entire mission. "However, to save my dad, I'll more than likely have to fight something that won't be easily defeated.." even with her current magic, Julia has doubts about fighting Vanessa of all things.

"Well, what are we waiting for! Let's go kick some people!" The hot-headed child yelled, But Julia quickly stopped her by grabbing Mu's hood "hey, what's the big idea?!"

"I appreciate the enthusiasm, but it's a lot harder then you might think.." Julia looked at her, a serious face she wore, but deep down in her eyes somewhere.. there was fear. Replaying the night she lost Moon still haunts her from time to time. "This person I have to fight is a witch of ice, the ex-queen of what used to be of Subcon."

"Who says you have to fight alone, hmm?" Mu held her hands to her hips "I just so happen to be skilled in bombs! Surely that'll come in handy, right?!"

Julia sighed, adjusted her hat, and looked at her with both eyes as she slowly moved her eye patch just so the taller girl could get a better look at her. The red hooded girl gasped quietly "look, sometimes running headfirst into situations you don't know, may not be the best thing;" normally Julia herself never thinks things through to the most part, but this time... "Melody and I were there when I lost my dad, we know what it was like in there with that.. thing."

Mustache girl looked to the ground, all the while Gabriele sat inside next to the door and listened to Julia talk. "That lady, she'll trap you in ice and never let you go; I never pointed it out to Melody, didn't think I needed to.. but throughout her house... there were... people and other things."

"People..? Trapped in ice..?" Mu quietly asked. She almost looked scared, but her brash nature kept it hidden.

Julia nodded, "I don't know if they were still alive, or they all died.. but I know the calamity she brought destroyed her kingdom.."

"What about that bird guy? With the tall hat?" Mustache girl questioned, folding her arms; she was questioning about Gabriele "will he help you?"

Julia went quiet, unsure about what to say; that's something she'll have to ask later... but for now... "I'm gonna go see if I can get some sort of transportation-" Julia pointed up, fixing her eye patch back into place "I'm still a little dizzy after our arrival, so I'm going to leave my bike here for now."

"No way I can travel all the way through the ocean with my walls.." Julia mumbled to herself as she looked back at a disappointed child. She sighed "Look, if you really want to come along and help, you'll need to listen to me, okay?" The older girl folded her arms but was immediately met with a happy smile from Mu.

She wants to be the right hero this time.

"And.. once this is all done and over with.." Julia turned around to plan her course "you can have first dibs at a passenger ride with me."

"Are you serious!?" That made her even more excited, but she tried to calm herself "this is gonna be so awesome!"

"Stay here, and make sure no one touches my bike, okay?" Julia waved as she remembered her way around like it was yesterday.

Mustache girl saluted, keeping a close eye on the scratched up bike. While also watering some flowers Cc had told her to do earlier-

* * *

There those two idiots were, standing and shuffling from foot to foot from the music inside, holding signs saying go away and keep out. Over the music they heard the cannon get shot off, someone was on their way. Getting ready to turn away those who don't have a reservation for today, they notice that the person who landed seems oddly familiar-

The two goons looked at each other, one shook his head and the other shrugged. As the person walked up, she stopped when one of the two mafia men held up their hands. "Stop, no entry for today; Mafia boss says mafia need reservation."

"Even if I know the boss man himself?" It was a girl, that voice...

"All mafia know mafia boss, boss is boss." The other said, trying to get a look at the girl's eyes- However the rim of her fedora blocked them.

The girl just smiled, "seriously though, come on guys!" She looked up, green eye gleaming "you're really gonna stop me from getting in and saying hello?"

* * *

An angry jar sat on a throne way to big for its size. Its eyes floated about in mush, and a mustache plus nose was glued to the glass. Its large chef hat wobbled as it turned to look at an incoming subordinate.

"Boss, boss!" The Mafia man exclaimed, "Will not believe who is headed this way! She says she's Mafia girl!"

"What!?" The jar yelled, "that is impossible! Who is this impostor, calling themselves this title?!" He turned to the side, looking at a display case with a certain green umbrella that was left behind long ago, "There is only one Mafia Girl, and she is-!"

"Aw, how sweet! I'd hug you if you still had a body!" Julia spoke up, she was spotted at the end of the long red carpet that led her to the large golden chair. "So that's what happened to my old weapon!"

"J-Julia..?" If the jar still had a beating heart, it'd skip a beat from surprise, and a little bit of fear. Was she a ghost? Is this umbrella that was on display haunted?

"The one, and only!" She held her arms out, walking towards him. "In case you were wondering, no- I didn't die, had to clear that up with a few people already. Just take my word for it okay?"

"Is that.. is it really you?" He asked looking at her, she looks totally different than before! "What exactly happened to you?"

"Well, got older, grew my hair out;" she counted off her fingers "got an eye patch, learned how to drive-"

"That is not what I mean!" He shouted, "what happened to you, where did you go!?"

Ah, that temper, she missed that; she smiled at him "I was sent back home, stayed for four years trying to find my way back."

"Four years.. it has really been that long..?" Being in a jar doesn't actually mean you can age any longer, you'd lose track of time or stop counting in total. "This entire time, you were looking for.. a way back?" There was a pause for a moment, then he started to chuckle, the guy looked happy "we must celebrate for this wondrous occasion then!"

Julia held up a hand to stop him, "going to have to call a rain check on that, Jar man. You see..-" the girl folded her arms and looked at him, she was meaning business "I'm on a mission right now, need to get to Subcon; can you lend me a boat and a mafia who can drive?"

Without question, the Mafia Boss surprisingly agreed, probably because of what he'd seen her and the child of time could do; In short, the man respected her "Of course, but we do not have a clear shot to that dreaded forest," The jar said, looking at her "you'd have to ride that blasted bird train to get to it, or you would have to travel a desert on foot."

"Ah, okay-" Julia nodded, she'll get to see the Conductor as well! Maybe she'll go see Grooves when she's done... "Thanks for that info by the way, so any chance I can go now?"

* * *

That was it, to meet at the marina on one side of the island, Julia had gathered her friends, Gabriele and surprisingly Mu; she needs to ask what her actual name is later. When she had come back to gather them, the tall girl had immediately walked to the guest room she was staying in and grabbed one of the items she had packed with her.

Securing the bike inside Cooking cat's house after she agreed to make sure nothing will happen to it, the three left with a bag of food, goodbyes, and wishes of safe returns. The item that Julia had come back for was a rather old looking aluminum bat.

The very same bat she had used to win the little league back when she was a small child; twirling the bat around, she nodded. May, or may not have packed the trophy as well- what could she say? That achievement was special to her because Julia had to hide the fact that she was a girl. Where she was from, girls weren't allowed to play, back then.

She and her grandfather had them all fooled. Who would have thought to call herself Julian would be so easy? She chuckled and shook her head as the three approached the marina. The Mafia goons that huddled around this place was as busy as ever. However, one stood out near a boat, they held a sign that said 'Mafia Girl' on it, indicating that this was their guy.

"Lovely.." Mu looked on with a face that told Julia, 'really?', but nobody decided to start a fight. They all hopped aboard the rather small to a medium-sized boat.

"To desert coastline, yes? Mafia will take you.." the guy said, getting behind the wheel, but then stopped "Mafia girl have map? Mafia does not remember way..."

"You got to be kidding.." Mustache girl mumbled as Gabriele shook his head.

Julia took a deep inhale, unsure of this situation; "you don't know how to navigate..?" She let her breath out.

"Mafia has never gone far from Mafia Town in long time." Was his reply

Suddenly, Julia's locket slowly lifted, Gabriele studied this; it pointed in a direction as if it was listening to the girl's thoughts.

"Yes, I see.." Gabriele folded his hands behind his back, "Remember when we were talking about Charms and magic?" Julia looked at him as he talked "Seems like that locket of your is finally charged with the magical energy you generate."

"Well- w..what is it doing?" Julia kept turning around, but it always pointed in the same direction.

"A helpful little thing it is, you now have 'Guidance' when you're lost but you know where you want to go," he pointed out "'Guidance' will help you." He then turned around to look at where it was pointed, and added: "but remembered, you can only use one magic ability at a time.."

Julia understands this, back when she and he were in the rift she needed to free fall for a bit to catch up to Gabriele when he was falling. Then she used her strings to grab him. The tall girl thinks she's got the info down.

"What happens when a charm takes magic in to fast?" Julia was suddenly curious and asked as the Mafia goon started the boat, she needed to stay with him because she was literally a compass now.

"Well, either nothing happens, or magical energy explodes around you, render you in a panicked unstable state.." Gabriele answered, in which that scared her "however, I've never seen that happen before.. so surely it's a rare occasion."

"I have no idea what you guys are talking about," Mu spoke up "but basically you need to be careful, right?"

"In a sense," Gabriele looked down at her "magic is no toy after all."

Mustache girl hunched her shoulders, trying to hide her head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It was funny, a long while back- Just a few months before Nyakuza Metro was even announced, I planed on giving Julia a basketball bat. So her actual weapon of choice was by complete coincidence!
> 
> Who would have thought?


	6. On the Rails

**(Chapter Six: On the Rails)**

The sun was even hotter than before, even though said object in the sky was already a fourth of the way to the horizon; soon it will get cold, but luckily the beach was already in sight. A small dock with a few boats tied to it was occupied by a few denizens of the sand and sky. Birds and what looked to be Nomads had a small town with palmetto trees swaying in the ever so slight breeze.

Julia had never seen this place before and had never gone here with Melody. The tall girl smiled "Wow, my first boat ride, and a new town.." she spun around with glee, "ain't this a nice evening?"

"Wait, you've never ridden on a boat before?" Gabriele questioned, head tilted to look at Julia as the three got off the boat while Julia told the Mafia man to get means of navigation back to Mafia Town "I feel honored to have shared this with you then."

"Hey, hey! Me too!" Mu spoke up, waving a hand at the two. Julia giggled "Don't forget I'm still here too, buddy!" If Gabriele could roll his eyes he would, but he knew the child was just having fun.

"Yes, yes.." Gabriele pats her head "how could I when you're just as loud as Zephyr.."

Julia laughed out fully at that, she didn't know why she found that funny, but it sure did fuel up the doc's pride when he managed to get such a reaction. Meanwhile, Mustache girl was left confused, a pouting face kept looking at the two; she wanted to know what was so funny too.

"We.. should get to the station before night time," Julia was recovering from the sudden outburst "a hot day in a desert is always followed by the cold."

"Indeed; I'd rather not be smushed in between you girls when night rolls around," Gabriel said, imagining the thought of being an immovable pillow rest. He'd much prefer to move around like the person he is, thank you. "I'm also not too big on sand.."

"Is it because It's coarse, rough, and irritating," Julia smiled smugly at him "and the fact it gets everywhere?"

Gabriele stopped for a second, not needing to turn around "I feel like you're mocking me."

Julia was having a fun time.

* * *

As expected, nighttime rolled around. Luckily the station had an indoor waiting area, with a fire keeping the place warm, Mu and Julia sat as close as they could, while the doctor got as far away as possible. When Mu had heard that Gabriele was made completely out of fabric and stuffing, she understood why he wanted to stay away. A single ember could do serious damage to him.

"What's with you and hanging out around living dolls anyways?" The child spoke, "first the one on Melody's ship, now this one here.."

"So, you met my son?" Julia asked

The red hooded girl sputtered, looking up at her with wild eyes "your son!?" She looked at her then at Gabriele like she was implying something. In which it totally flew over Julia's head. She may have gotten older, but she was still the same oblivious girl. "Are you two-?"

"Hmm?" The taller girl tilted her head, understanding that she was still talking about Kero "oh, no! I just kinda.. picked Kero up at Subcon; guess he just took a liking to me after I freed him from a fight."

Realizing that Julia had no idea what she was trying to say, the child dropped the subject for now "So you just.. adopted him..?" Mu raises a brow at her

"Pretty much." Julia shrugged "made his body myself out of potato bags.."

"Potato bags.." Mustache girl looked at her, unamused.

"He's my precious potato child, leave him alone.." the taller girl was offended.

From afar, Gabriele listened to their conversation. They had kept talking about different things and what they've done over the four years. He had found out that Mu's actual name was Lynn and that she rarely uses it anymore. She was known as Mustache girl, but Julia Intended to use her actual name more.

As his mind wandered, he focused on the flickering light of the fire and the crackle of the embers by accident, triggering his PTSD. By the time he figured out what was happening, Julia was right next to him trying to get his attention.

"Doc, doc-" Julia gently shook him "Gabriele! Are you okay..?" He breathed heavily even though he had no lungs to breathe from, his shoulders shook from the sudden stress and he was being watched by Julia and Lynn. "Hey.. hey, you wanna.. go outside for a bit?"

Taking a moment, he nodded stiffly, getting up and taking her hand to walk. "Lynn, stay there okay?" The mustached child nodded, taking a peek from the bench she sat on. Watching the two walk out the door.

The moment the two walked out, Julia immediately felt the cold hit her like a punch to the gut, and she knew what that felt like. "Hot, damn! It's cold out here!" The night sky was beautiful though, the stars so much more different then the ones she's used to seeing.

"You.. can go back.. inside, if you wish.," Gabriele whispered, finally finding his voice.

"No, no! It's fine, I want to make sure you're okay-" those eyes, well eye in Julia's case, has worry in them. The two sat down on the cold stone bench, immediately giving her shivers. She fought off the cold though "What... was that back there.." She then realized that wouldn't be such a great thing to ask "I- I mean if you don't mind me asking-"

"I.. I..-" Gabriele sighed out of habit "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry you.." he couldn't stop looking into her eye. There was that feeling again, that little want to just.. be held? He couldn't just say that though, oh no- something deep down told him not to.

"No, I'm sorry.., the fact that I can't do much to help you.." Julia looked away, up to the sky and at the moon

A moment of silence passed, to try and gather his jumbled thoughts, to try and calm himself... maybe he shou-

A loud whistle from the tracks, a moment passed then, again and again, seem like the train was almost here. What timing, to be interrupted by anything, it was the train. "Right then, he stood up a little too quickly, looking at her still "gather our little friend, I shall be waiting right here.."

Julia gave one last glance at the plague doctor, still a worried look, as she left to go get Lynn; the words he heard the child say echoed in his head-

'Are you two-?'

"Good heavens.." he placed a hand to his head, "what has gotten to me?"

* * *

The train was as crazy looking as ever, just like the time she and the kid were staring in that detective movie. That, in all honesty, was fun, wish she could say the same for the others though.. Julia looked at her hands, remember the white-hot pain when she touched the burning metal of the train car.

But the train was back to normal, as big as ever. The tall girl was glad the Conductor was able to rebuild his train. Speaking of which, she has a trip in mind before the train takes off. As Julia wandered off, that left Gabriele to watch over Lynn. Lynn also wanted to explore-

"Don't wander off to far.," he called out, earning a reassuring wave.

Something shuffled quickly behind the doctor, far in the corners where he couldn't see. He didn't turn around, no- whatever was there was aware of him. He didn't like it.

Julia traveled through the dinner cart, it wasn't as lively as before, but that's due to the fact that its night- "wait, aren't owls nocturnal..?" She pushed that thought away, maybe they're not up yet.

As she walked, the quiet room was filled with her tapping, but then, there was shuffling; Julia stopped. Sounded like the clinking of metal.. quietly tiptoeing to the source, she started to hear humming now.

A fork clattered on the ground and slid, she looked down and picked it up. As she stood back up she was met face to face with an odd-looking crow. The tall girl jumped a few feet. The bird wore the same kind of coat as the others, but more slightly tinted purple? She couldn't tell, however, the Crow also didn't wear a hat like the rest of the crows she's seen. Three little feathers popped up like a mohawk. Eyes a super light shade of pink.

It just stared at her, then the fork, then her, then hummed again "Mmm.. fork..?"

"I'm sorry.. what?" She asked.

"Fork! Mmm.." the crow pattered in place. Julia now understood that he, yes, it was a he, wanted the fork in her hands. "Mmmm, Fooorrrk... Mmm..-"

"Oh! Uh, you sure you want this?" She looked at it "it was on the floor and-" but the Crow gently took it from her and hummed with a small smile, then proceeded to pull out a piece of crumpled paper. He handed it to her.

Julia looked down at the paper, to her surprise, it was a.. a wanted poster?! "Guy, (With many Forks) is wanted alive for five hundred pons on the account of stealing Forks statewide." She read out loud, looking up to see that the crow was gone.

She quickly looked around, a little frightened; That crow moves fast. But why Forks..- Julia just now noticed she assisted a thief steal Forks. "I'm... never speaking of this to anyone.." and continued walking.

Eventually, she had made her way near the front. That was a more busy area it seemed. Owls chatted about, some worked and some just kept sleeping. There were some crows walking around asking questions if they'd seen an ex-detective who was stealing forks. Julia nimbly avoided contact with them. That's a situation she doesn't want to be apart of anymore.

Some of the owls who were awake and working took notice of the tall girl. They thought she looked like someone they knew, but with their anxiety, they didn't want to know if they were right or wrong in fear of being embarrassed. Though it didn't stop them from looking at her.

Julia could hear the Conductor as she quietly took notice that the owls know she's here. She smiled, as she quickly got up behind the Conductor and switched hats with him. Of course, he noticed something wasn't right as he turned around to start giving an ear full to whoever was messing with him and his hat.

"Oi! Who the wise peck-" when he turned around Julia crouched in front of the angry bird, "what the, What!?"

"C'mon, gramps! Let me drive the train!" She smiled at the Conductor, who was clearly stunned.

"Lass..?" He questioned, looking at her.

"Not dead!" She answered, giving his hat back and taking hers "never died."

A pause, the two looked at each other, and then the two embraced in a tight hug. If anything, the Conductor missed her and Melody the most. The Conductor cackled, "Julia, Lass! The peckin movie world thought yer was dead!" He let go and looked at her "aye, the lot of us did.."

"Well, if you have any movies coming up, you know who to call!" Julia smiled, then added in "just as long as no lava or stabbing is involved-"

"Ya got it, lassie," he smiled, then motion for her to follow him "So, where ya headed? Yer on me train, must mean yer goin someplace?"

"Yeah; Me, that plague doctor, you remember him?" She looked down at him and he nodded "and the mustache girl-"

"Wot!? Ya let that little peck neck onta me train!?" He turned around and shouted at Julia, but she was unfazed by it. In fact, it didn't make her flinch at all, so he calmed down.

"Relax, she's with me. I'm gonna vouch for her." Julia stated, looking at him with a serious face "she can be a good kid when she tries."

"Fine then, I'll take yer word for it," the Conductor pointed at her "but if she does anytin, she's gettin the boot!"

Julia nodded, if that were the case, she'd be prepared to start walking on foot. That was only a worst-case scenario. "Alright, anyways-" she paused for a second "we're headed to Subcon; we got business there."

"M'guessing yer gonna need a room, huh?" The Conductor asked, "That forest is still another night away. On account of a couple of a few stops along its way."

Julia confirmed this, She was starting to notice just how tired she was getting, let alone how Lynn must feel? She was gratefully given a room key for one of the many sleeping rooms. As she left, Julia heard the Conductor clear his throat,

"Em, between yer and me;" She smiled, Julia could guess what he was about to say "Ya didn't see Grooves yet, did ya?"

"Nope," The Conductor cackled at this again, he was first; probably should have mentioned it, that he'll probably brag about it later- but he was happy.

* * *

"Honestly, Julia.." Gabriele looked at her, Holding Lynn as she was out cold while the taller girl fumbled around with the key "that's what crows do, they take anything that is shiny."

"But like-" Julia finally got the door open "he specifically went after Forks!" She whispered, taking a look at the room. It was small but nice. "He could have taken anything, Spoons, Knives; at least you could dig and cut with them-"

"But Forks are rather.. easier to pierce and grab.," he noted.

The two looked at each other; taking a silent note to avoid this deranged crow man. He could do some serious damage with those things, and he's been stealing fork statewide! Who knows how many he has!

Placing the child down on a separate bed, the two adults sat on a rather comfy couch. They continued to talk about things, may it be magic or miscellaneous things like favorites, or things Gabriele used to do. However vague they were.

Julia unintended to lay her head on his shoulder, making him freeze up. By the looks of it, however, she was about to pass out. Gabriele sighed, "Rest now, I'll wake you when morning comes.." not moving her at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've only ever done romance like one time a few years back, but even then I was unsure about it. I'm gonna give it another go and see where this genre takes me- hopefully it doesn't go up in smoke.
> 
> Current active Characters of Mine:
> 
> Julia/Fedora  
> Gabriele/Leader of Hearts (Friend?)  
> Guy with many Forks (Crow Fork Thief)


	7. Double Effect

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double effect; doing something morally good has a morally bad side-effect.

**(Chapter Seven: Double effect)**

The train ambiance was rather nice when you're not filming a murder mystery or a havoc cluster of hell that was train rush. Sitting around and just listening? This was relaxing. Day time had come, a majority of the owls where asleep so the three nonnocturnal beings would be able to wander freely once awoken.

By the time night comes, they'll be at Subcon's doorstep. Julia always wondered if there was an entry for the forest. She knew it was past the swampy area, that's what prevented her and Melody from leaving before, but was there a walkway they could have found?

Guess she'll figure things out when she gets there.

Julia had woken rather early, just early enough to figure out that Gabriele can.. in fact.. sleep. He seemed in more of a meditative state, but he was unresponsive either way. Lifting herself up slowly from his shoulder, the girl makes a note to never sleep on a couch while still sitting up. Cracking her back she decided to walk out of the room.

It would be reasonable to save the sandwiches that Cooking Cat had made for Lynn and herself, because they were heading into a forest that was practically, mostly dead. Also on fire, if she remembered correctly. However, Julia was unsure if she wanted to eat bird-related food that was on this train. Maybe there were human foods as well?

It looks like she'll just have to find out.

As she walked through train car to train car, Julia has been having this.. odd feeling. Before they had fallen asleep last night Gabriele did mention something was strange about the train. Or at least, something that was on it. Now that she feels it too, she couldn't help but reach for the bat she kept tied around her shoulder.

When that feeling was now unbearable, Julia, in a blink, backhanded her bat and slammed into someone. That figure flew backward with a crash, and a groan that sounded familiar; but whatever, or whoever it was is still giving off an aura of 'danger' and 'don't get close'.

In short, the feeling was strong.

But when the being popped out of wherever they had landed, Julia was at a loss. "Doc..?" No, that wasn't right. Gabriele didn't have an aura unless he took his frilly tie off. This thing... that wasn't Gabriele.

"Ah, That was quite the swing, Julia.." it knew her name, which means it had been following them around the train. The next thing she noticed was that it was readjusting itself; The plague doctor was a doll.. he didn't need to stretch his neck.

Julia narrowed her eyes, "Oh, hey.. uh... Sorry?" She scratched the back of her head. She didn't want to get close at all.

"It's quite alright," he.. it, brushed itself off and looked up at her, "You seemed rather tense, and I just wanted to make sure you were alright."

"Thanks.." she didn't let go of her weapon at all, "what.. what were you doing so close behind me..?" Julia moved her head to the side but still looked at it. The only other danger she could remember came from Zephyr. "You could have called out to me, let me know you were there.." Zephyr was a user of Illusions...

Could this be..?

From a dark corner of the train car the two were currently in, a black blur sprung into action. Taking out a shiny object from the inside of their coat, it stabbed the unsuspecting thing that looked like Gabriele.

It's was Guy! The fork thief, who is currently coming to Julia's rescue. The being Guy had stabbed yelled out in pain, and tried to buck off the Crow from it's back. Guy could only aggressively Hum as he held on; definitely a bird of little words.

"Julia!" The Human girl turned her head to look at the door she had come through before all of this started, there he was- the real Gabriele "What in heavens is going on here?!"

"Looks like we got a doppelgänger!" Lynn suddenly yelled with excitement from behind Gabriele, causing him to turn around as well.

"Lynn-! I told you to stay back in the room!" He panicked.

"And I- don't take orders from you!" She crossed her arms "I don't like taking orders from anyone!" She then noted, "Cc is taking care of me, and Julia is a temporary gig."

"You make it sound like I hired a freelancer," Julia shouted, turning her attention back at the doppelgänger "if you ask me to pay up when this is over, I'm locking you in a box!"

Once Guy had gotten thrown off, Julia came around and swung her bat once more, not sending him flying back, but staggered the thing. It was now more acquainted with how hard she hits. That wasn't a good sign at all, it can adapt, it can turn into anything else; what else could it do?

"Well, it seems like keepin this form is no longer useful.." the voice had drastically changed from the doctor's old English accent to what sounded like- a Boston one? "So, I'll tell ya what; you go down all peaceful like, and nobody gets hurt." It pointed to Julia, who immediately raised a brow at the thing. It was strange, it was like multiple voices at the same time, but you could clearly hear the Boston vocals.

Though, that wasn't the only part that made everyone freeze. It was the fact that this thing's true form was like an amalgam stitched figure that stood way taller than her; Taller then Gabriele, and he's around seven feet tall. It also was very much _not_ Zephyr.

Multiple eyes looked back at the human girl, all those eyes belonged to the being. "What the hell are you?" Julia slipped out, to stunned to even move.

"Doll, ima shapeshifta," it smiled with its many eyes "One an only in existence!" It seemed too proud when it said that. "Just one touch, an your looks are mine!"

It lunged at her, and Julia panicked; raising a few walls, she trapped herself in a cube. The doppelgänger smack into her magic, who was dazed for just a few seconds before knocking on said wall. "Oh, I see now, that's why you swung at me!" It looked all giddy "you could sense, but only to an extent!"

Which explains why she only attacked when the thing was right next to her. She's strong, but she has no idea how to properly use herself to the fullest. To someone who's more accustomed to magic, the being will have a fun time being her.

From behind, Guy ran along and head-butted the being in the spine. However, the amalgam immediately turned around. Getting picked up by said being, Guy was tossed out.. the moving.. train. The glass broke from the strong force and everyone else shouted after the bird as he was lost to the speed.

Guy was gone.

"You.." Julia looked up at the broken window "threw him.. out the window." Did he just seriously kill the most quirky bird she'd ever seen?

"I, in fact, did, thanks for statin the obvious, doll." It still smiled, however, in the cube where Julia resides, he noticed her move the eye patch out of the way so she could see. Something seemed off about that; The eye looked familiar to the being.

"Lynn.." Gabriele whispered to the small child, "back up, and close the door." He untied his necktie, getting ready to intervene if it was required. "Find The Conductor if you must, but stay away from this car."

Hearing Julia scream out with rage Lynn had ever heard, she immediately ran and slammed the door. "He was a thief, but he could have been a friend!" Julia whiplashed her strings out towards the shapeshifter once the shield fully dissipated, slicing a small part of the cloth it wore.

Compared to most outbursts, this was pretty mild; it kinda reminded the being of-

"Oh, oh, yeah!" It laughed looking at it's cut clothing "That's who ya remind me of! That ol' moon demon." It didn't seem all to fazed, maybe a little on the cautious side, but nothing the being couldn't physically deal with "You're one of his cronies, yeah?!"

"Oh man, oh man! What a treat this is!" It was really excited now, then looked towards the doctor as well, "and you; I knew I felt something when I snagged your shape; your an escapee!"

However, during the being's talking, it was being assaulted by Julia from afar, who wasn't having this thing's overconfident attitude. While it's attention was back to the tall girl, Gabriele snatched a few scalpels out if his coat pockets; with good precision, he threw them into the being shoulder.

"Ow, What the-!?" As it tried to look down, Julia came up and slammed a wall into it. That was the first time Julia had ever made one of her walls slide. However, she was to pissed off to realize the achievement. "Hey! Teamin up like this ain't fair!" The shapeshifter yelled, then looked at the doctor "and you! Stop spewin that noxious gas of yours! It's given me a headache!"

"Oh, no, no; this is actually for your safety;" Gabriele walked up, looking at the doppelgänger with his always straight face "you see, you've gone and made my dear, mad." He gestured towards Julia "mentioning The puppeteer as you did, only made it worse."

"She could easily slice you into bits if she wanted." Was what he finally said. Julia took a quick glance at his back, fingers crossed. At first, the girl thought he was being serious. But clearly, he was playing a trick as well. Could they intimidate this thing? "After all, she's not just some 'crony' as you say!"

"She's the heir to his throne."

Julia's thought about this as well... she.. she technically.. was...

Holy shit.

"Ya gotta be shittin me." Was the doppelgänger's reply, it then looked at her again "That carrot stick? The heir? Hah! Ack-" Julia squished harder on the wall. In the shapeshifter's eyes, all the more reason to take her figure; then again? If they ever ran across the moon demon himself at some point, said demon would definitely feel it.

The doppelgänger had been steering clear of that guy to avoid being used as a puppet; does it really want to start a war? No, it would rather pick on weaker beings then itself. This was to much work now. "Alright, alright, new deal; ya let me go, and I'll stay outa ya hair-"

It looked at Julia expecting a change of face "I won't bother ya, and you won't turn me into ribbons!"

"You'll also get the hell off this train and never come back," Julia growled at him, pressing harder.

"Cool, cool! I get it!" It was out of breath. If the shapeshifter doesn't turn into ribbons, it'll definitely turn into a wall pancake. "We good!?"

Julia gave a side glance towards the doctor, who in turn shrugged as if to say 'go-ahead'. Releasing the wall, the doppelgänger huffed and feel to the floor. "Man, you puppet folk; always so moody."

"Watch it." Julia glared

"My point exactly." It let out a chuckle.

"What in peck is goin on here!?" Every head turned as the loudest bird on the train, as he came running into the car; taking a glimpse at the destruction and the broken window, alongside the odd-looking passenger that wasn't Gabriele.

His first reaction was to take out his knife and point it at the Shapeshifter. Before the Conductor could even attack, the amalgamation turned to look at Julia, "Name's Doppler by the by; gotta scuttle now, Dolly!" quickly turning into a large spider, the being crawled out the broken window; Never to be seen again.

"I don't like that nickname.." Julia mumbled. She then turned to Gabriele "also, 'my dear'?" She raised a brow, he normally says this at the beginning or end of his sentence with her name that follows; something was off about it this time.

Gabriele just cleared his throat and walked away without a word. Avoiding the questions thrown at him.

"Not a trouble fer four years," The Conductor looked at Julia "till ya came along again lass.." he chuckled with a smile "aye, stuff kickin up now. Excitin!"

Despite the whole train rush movie, a broken window and missed placed objects seemed alright. Though, now he'll have to keep an eye out now.

* * *

Night rose once again, the train slowed down to a stop. Just a few blocks from the old looking station, which looked like an over-glorified bus stop, Julia and the others stepped off to see the start of the woods. Grass fading from a golden dead brown to purple as it was then consumed by the swamp. Willow trees and mangroves could be seen mixing in with the taller trees that reminded her of redwood. An odd combo, but it was kinda.. nice?

But it was also cold.

A lot colder then she remembered the place. Shivering, Julia sighed, "We better get walking, we're almost there... I think."

"I'd give you my coat, but it's currently sown onto my body.." Gabriele commented, noticing the chill. He personally didn't need this coat.

"Do you.. want me to take care of that for you later..?" Julia turned her head and taking another moment to remember that she had a charm for navigation; "I could detach it from you later if you want-.." taking hold of her locket and giving it one good look at the picture within; she closed it and held it out. It will tell her where she needs to go, despite if the path ahead might be broken.

"You'd have to be incredibly careful cutting the small strings, but yes.. that would be much appreciated." Gabriele folded his arms behind his back, taking his normal stance as he walked.

Once they arrived at the forest front, Gabriele noticed that where the swamp starts, there was, in fact, a boardwalk followed by old candle lanterns. He pointed it out to the others as the locket moved in that direction. In the beginning, the boardwalk seemed fine, a few rotted spots, but people could travel through the path. Though, as they went deeper in, the boardwalk was starting to show signs of creaking, and separation. Not only that but sometimes they would hear.. things.

"I.. don't like this place. Too dark, and I can barely see!" Lynn spoke up, crossing her arms "why didn't we bring a light with us?!"

"Yes, it would seem wise to wait till day.." Gabriele spoke up, "however, we would have to backtrack a bit to find a more stable place to rest.."

Knowing Julia, she'd want to keep moving until she was finally in Subcon. But a small little idea popped into her head.

Raising a hand she called out a small square of her barrier. Smaller and smaller until the light that came from it focused on one area. It looked more like an odd pyramid without a tip. The light wasn't as good, but at least they could see the floorboards.

"Neat.," Lynn spoke up, but after that it was silent.

The noise they heard earlier, sounded more and more like whispers and chimes of bells. It was really unsettling for the smaller girl but Gabriele was not moved and Julia had her guard up. They don't exactly know what lingers in the swamp area beside Julia's knowledge of the hands.

She hates those hands.

Particles of light started floating around as Julia dismissed her odd light maker. Each light that floated around were different colors; Blue, Red, Green-

"Hey.. what's that up there..?" Lynn whispered, getting everyone's attention.

The path up was even more splintered off as a small little figure stood, looking at them; Teal orbs glowed in the dark with an angry expression.

"Trespasser!" It yelled, arms raised as the swamp around it started to bend. "Go away!"

Everyone was pushed together noticing how the swamp was coming alive, Julia squinted her eyes to get another look; that voice.. no- it couldn't be!

"..Kero..?" Julia spoke up; chest in a bind from unfamiliar emotions.

It took a second, but the swamp stopped rising and fell back into place. The little thing was stunned as now and more lights started popping up. Those lights belonged to a few dwellers.

"..Mama..?"

Julia finally got a better look once the place was lit up like Christmas, it was Kero, but he looked different. His body shape was the same but he wore a good and a few more articles of clothing.

"Oh my god-" Julia smiled at her child; was it strange that he seemed a little taller? "My baby!"

The two ran for each other, hopping through the sludge of the swamp and then embraced in a crushing hug.

"Mama!" Kero smiled through his eyes.


	8. Subcon's Problem

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got a little side tracked writing this chapter, and honestly it didn't go anywhere much beside talking. Next chapter we'll hopefully have more action! Also might slow down a bit, think i'm catching a cold. not enough to where I'll be bedridden but my head is definitely killing me right now.

**(Chapter Eight: Subcon's problem)**

"How are you able to control the swamp, kiddo?" Julia asked while Kero rode on her shoulders; everything was new about him, to the new outfit, to actually having three stubby fingers at the end of both hands. Now, Julia knew for sure that was a new thing. Had Snatcher altered her design while she was away?

Well, he did a darn good job. Better then she could have done while she was sleep-deprived back then.

"I'm not actually sure either, it just happened one day!" Kero hugged his mother's head as they kept talking. The other two following them decided to keep their distance, especially Lynn so that they could catch up, but didn't stray too far from them. "I don't know if it was because I lived and died in these swamps," Kero looked down at Julia "or if it was something to do with you!"

By a contract, these two are connected to an extent, like how Julia and Moon are. It was most likely the same scenario on how Julia developed magic as well; Being exposed could have done something.

That, or he's special.

"I'm happy you weren't permanently gone, mama.." Kero closed his eyes and just kept holding on "I missed you so much.." there was so much emotion behind those words, but no one understood it better than him.

"I miss you too, my little frog." Julia smiled as Kero giggled, then the sack child perked up and pointed forward.

"Mama! Up ahead!" Everyone looked, just beyond, was a road. A road she was familiar with!

"This is where Melody and I were first trapped!" She looked around, then up, the tarp hooks were still there. "Hah, he never took them down." Julia then looked up at Kero with a smile, "Should we go say hi the normal way, or..-"

"You're thinking about stepping in one of his traps, aren't you.." Gabriele spoke up while shaking his head, sighing. "Would rather you not, even if it would be entertaining."

Listening to Gabriele say that reminded Julia of her actual reason for being here, of course, she never forgot, but saying hello would have been.. alright. Actually she's not even sure if she wants to- but hey. "Do you guys mind if I talk to Kero for just a bit." Julia turned around to the others "just for a moment, we'll be over by those trees." She pointed on the other side of the road "if anything happens, just shout."

Gabriele nodded, Lynn just kinda.. held her arms together, she was cold, but she was also feeling something no one noticed besides the taller girl. Julia walked over to the trees and placed her child down. It had really been four years since she'd seen Kero, and she couldn't believe it still. He looked much more confident, but still a little shaken.

He's doing good.

Julia got down to eye level with her son "Kero," she smiled, still very happy to see he was doing okay "So, there are many reasons as to why I'm back.." Kero looked at her, head tilted "of course you're one of them. I would never leave you on purpose; I don't plan on it happening ever again." Kero smiled at this. "But the other reason is-"

"You've come to rescue Moon." Kero looked at her "I've seen him with you once or so... back when I was too scared to approach you.." He kicked the dirt slightly "and Snatcher told me a little more about the situation.. on what happened." Kero doesn't know exactly what took place, but he was terrified when Julia and Melody were sitting unconscious in the snow. He was so scared; were they dead? Did the ice lady take them like she took his parents..?

Kero remembered a few things while his mother was gone. A few things he needs to talk to her about; but clearly not now. At some point...

If she was implying this, then most certainly his mother will, in fact, take on the scary lady. Something about that made him freeze up. He wasn't aware of it, but Kero suffered from Pagophobia; just the thought of being turned into an ice sculpture makes him disassociate for a few minutes.

Julia noticed how spaced out he was, she placed each of her hands on his cheeks, the warmth brings him back and looks directly at her "Mama... I'm scared.. but not for me this time." His voice cracked "M'scared I'm gonna lose you for good."

"Not gonna happen." She smiled at him, a reassuring one, even though she was anything but sure about herself. "Lynn is trying to be a good person now, kiddo, don't think I haven't noticed the way you two look at each other." She knows something happened between them, but what? She wasn't sure "She going to go fight with me... so I'm not going to be alone." As much as Julia would rather not risk Lynn's life, the child would most likely blow a hole in the wall if the older girl said no to her anyway.

"I..- I wanna fight too!" Kero suddenly spoke up "I have beef with the witch too!" Did he learn that saying from Snatcher? "I.. I..-" He kept trembling, Julia just hugged him tightly. She shouldn't, she really shouldn't let him go anywhere near that house. Julia doesn't want him to get hurt.

"Do you.. really want to..?" Julia softly spoke, still feeling him shake "if not, I'll gladly punch her for you."

"I wanna try.." Kero buried his face into her chest "I wanna.. try.."

The moment broke when behind them was a loud whistle, specifically from Lynn. Julia quickly got up and turned around; Snatcher's back was facing Julia and Kero, she stopped the urge to slam a barrier on his head. Lynn and Gabriele, who had gained attention from a few minions, had been seen sitting down on a bench nearby. They were quickly alerted to their boss, who now was in a dangerous stance.

"The two of you have some nerves making your way into my forest!" He growled, glaring at both Lynn and Gabriele, who got up just in case a fight broke out. "How did you get past my little swamp guard?!"

"Well, that's because your little swamp guard is my son!" Julia yelled, giving a good scare out of the supernatural deal maker. She'd never seen such a face on Snatcher since the day she and Melody beat him in a fight. "Yeah, that's right. I'm back you, blasted sock snake!" Julia smiled, still not good at making names.

Snatcher glared, But he smiled? Was he happy to see her? That made her feel.. actually happy. "So, the meat puppet returns!" He laughed, "oh, I knew it. I just knew nothing could keep you down." He folded his arms and bent down closer to her "you're like an annoying dandelion coming out of concrete."

"And where there's one, there's many." Julia held her hands out. "Those two are with me. Don't even think about taking her soul." Julia pointed to Lynn "I'll kick your tail faster then Melody and I did back then."

He held a smug face, almost daring her to start a fight. Though, he noticed something was off about Julia, her whole structure; her soul. Cracked, fragmented, and slightly warped. Moons strings that had been left tied to her soul constricted it, and her magic flow.

"Hey, Kid.. you feeling alright?" Julia's sudden challenging face turned to surprised confusion, head tilted to the side she said:

"Yeah... I feel alright. Why do you ask?" Her arms folded and shook her head. "Ah, no- tell me another time; look, mind if we stay here for while?"

It then clicked in his head as to why she was back in his forest now "You're not really serious are you?" Snatcher rose to his full height and looked down at her "did you actually come back all this way to get him..?"

Julia glared, not making liking his tone as everyone around them watched in silence. There was a slight cold breeze that flew by, everyone looked to the broken bridge down the path. The snow had been getting worse ever since their first tragic encounter with Vanessa...

Snatcher feared she was growing more and more aware.

"Kid, I'm just not trying to get your hopes up;" He never looked away from the bridge "But Moon boy is probably far too gone now. It'd be a freakin miracle if he hadn't corroded away."

"No matter what you say, I'm still going to pick a fight with her." Julia was dead set on this now. She didn't want to believe what he said, she didn't want to just give up after making it this far. She wasn't a quitter anymore. Julia wasn't going to just end it by jumping out windows.

No.

She was going to fight, or damn well die trying.

But what about Gabriele? Lynn? Everyone else..

_what about Kero?_

Simple. She just has to win.

Maybe the girl could talk some sense into the Queen? Maybe she could still be brought back? Make her see what she had done? There's no way she was always possessive, and controlling.. right? Julia would say it couldn't hurt to try, but golly would she be lying. Worse case, she'd become the newest ice statue in her house.

Julia definitely needs to prepare and needs to have a few more words with Gabriele. This was it.. she needed to know.

Can he be trusted? Or will he just abandon her in the fray? How devoted is he to her cousin's request..?

Julia heard Snatcher sigh, She blinked a couple of times before she came back to reality. "Fine. Do what you want." He had his hand on the place where the bridge of his nose would be "If you can get rid of her, somehow, I'll even let you live in the forest. Your own little place."

Julia would much prefer a sunny beach home, but she had to admit, She loved the supernatural; no mater the impressions Snatcher or any other giving her. She'll always love the dark woods. Subcon always reminds her of Halloween, and it was always her favorite time of year.

Julia kept her eyes on Snatcher for the longest time thinking about this, "deal." She said but was confused when he didn't want to attempt to sign a contract with her. He just floated away. "Okay.. that was new.."

Soon the crowd dispersed, and it was just the four of them again. "So, That happened.." Gabriele spoke up looking in the direction Snatcher went. He had gone back to his tree, floated inside for a few moments before Gabriele lost interest and turned back to Julia who also wore a distant look.

She sighed, finally looking at everyone else. "I'm going to need some time to steel myself-" Julia said, "Gabriele when we make it just before the manor, I'd like to speak with you.."

That's didn't sound swell at all, But she knew of the story between Moon and himself.. not the entire thing, but some. The only real question is; what is she going to say?

"Of course, Julia." He nodded.

What is she thinking?

Julia then looked to the two children, "When we start talking, you two just hand back. I don't want to bring you guys into any drama before a fight."

That definitely didn't sound good.

Was Gabriele going to have to be cautious of Julia now? Course he was always cautious of her, but not in any means of trust- he trusted her.. doesn't he..?


	9. The Cold Front

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go, guy! A chapter that's at least 6,000 words long! Took advantage of my messed up sleep pattern to keep writing this chapter, and it was long anticipated since the first time I was writing about Vanessa's Manor. Now, I absolutely have no confidence in the end, but I was trying my best to hit Vanessa hard.
> 
> I think I have a fever starting as well, so that's.. great. I'm doing my best to try and keep it down but anxiety is not helping me settle down. So as usual, please help me keep and eye out for any errors that I may have missed, it's harder when chapters are longer. Enjoy!

**(Chapter Nine: The Cold Front)**

Julia took her moment to get a hold of herself, see what she was able to do before running back into that mansion. Honestly, she's glad Melody wasn't here... even if she'd want to fight by Julia, the child would no doubt be scared out of her wits again.

The older girl will not lie, she was still very scared. But she's doing this for someone else, Julia has to pull through.

The girl raised a Barrier, one that covered her body well, and started making a box; before she got angry back at the train, she was able to move one wall at least. Canceling out the cube she was in, she decided to make smaller ones, perhaps it's the size the stops her from moving many? Julia glided them around slowly before remembering that angry feeling and forcing the cubes at a tree.

Part of the tree splintered from the force, the edges cutting it up. Maybe that was too much... the force she just used could give someone a concussion.. or worse, kill them. No, no- that's not what she wanted. The kid might not be here, but she never stopped following that rule.

"Never purposely kill anyone.." she whispered...

But was Vanessa even alive? She couldn't be.. she was a ghost-like Snatcher. No way she could still be alive, alive.

Something then clicked in her head, Julia looked at her hand for just a second and thought. She threw up another wall, that idea she had reminded her of Zephyr..- She cracked her barrier and it shattered into pieces.

Though, the pieces never fell, with a swift movement of her hand Julia hurled them at the tree. Every edge of the glass-like structure wedge themselves into the bark. Like tiny knives.

Julia stood shocked, she shook her head wanting to quickly forget this idea at all. What was she thinking!? This could be devastating to a living person! What came over her? The pieces disappeared, "stick to large barriers for protection, that's what they're used for.." Julia looked down in shame "and maybe driving in the sky.."

Chuckling to herself at that last part she then remembered her strings. If worse, she could always attempt to tie Vanessa up in a cocoon... no doubt deal pain to herself in the process.

Frustrated, she took her hat off and threw it down "why can't I just use my abilities without hurting myself and others!?" She let out a yell. She could also attempt to trap her in a box, but it wouldn't be permanent. There was no way of getting out of there without a fight. The last thing she'd want was to fight Vanessa outside and in the forest. That would cause more damage to this place than it already suffered.

"Mama..?" Kero looked at his mother confused, and Julia turned around like she was okay.

Kero had a few minions behind him, at least four.. they looked awfully familiar...

"Hey, if you don't want your hat- can I keep it?" One of them spoke.

"Of for the love of-" Julia whispered, picking up her hat. It was them. Three of the little devils that made her trade her hat away, or get crushed by a weight. The fourth one, however...

"You're really thinking about going back in there.." the fourth spoke, "I know he sacrificed himself to save us.. do you think he'd want you to go back..?"

Not now, don't argue now.

"Whether he wants me too or not, I'm still going to get him out.." Julia looked at the fourth, taking a breath. She looked at all of them then her son "what's up kiddo, need something?"

"The Minions and some Dwellers agreed to help us plow through the snow!" Kero smiled "ever since you guys left, the snow from the manor kept piling up and moving.."

Julia looked surprised, "how far we talking here..?"

"About to the end of the entrance of the ice wall that surrounds the manor.." The first minion announced, "it's completely covered in snow.."

"Don't get the wrong idea, we're not stepping foot into that place!" The second said

"Yeah..- we'll only help with the snow.." the third peeped up.

Julia smiled, at least they were helping in some way; she couldn't ask them to face Vanessa with her.. "that's alright, thank you."

* * *

The four main personnel stood at the edge of the bridge, a few Minions with shovels and a couple of Dwellers with varying masks piled behind them. Snatcher was way in the back, staring holes in the back of Julia's head but she was completely oblivious to this. Was he worried? Probably. He was sad that she and Melody left, Julia's being more abrupt than the child's, but this feeling was now starting to bother him.

Especially with her soul's condition.

On the bright side, he won't be there when that bomb goes off.. hopefully. What was MoonJumper thinking to leave her soul tied up? You can't tie up a living person's soul for too long without expecting consequences. That's why Snatcher has always killed his victims or eaten their souls.

When left alive they get more agitated, and.. "aggressive.." Snatcher whispered.

What he witnessed in his forest was no fluke; Julia was already under its effect and she was to blind to realize why she was getting so angry.

Julia called upon a barrier to close the gap with the bridge and everyone slowly started crossing, some were amazed and others were silent as they walked. Making sure everyone was over on the other side, Julia then crossed over herself and looked at everyone. They expected her to lead this odd group of people.

"Alright then, Clean up crew;" Julia spoke up "your job is to make sure our way is clear." Looking at everyone, she was reminded of her first day of college giving a prepped speech "If anything threatens to attack, just call out or bail. I don't want no one getting hurt!"

A few nods and acknowledgment with mumbled carried around, Kero and Lynn looked at each other and quickly looked away. Gabriele just held his hands behind his back in his normal stance.

"My team will be heading in when the way is cleared." Julia then looked at Gabriele dead in the eyes "We will be heading in. Let's get a move on." The man stalled for a moment then started moving when everyone else gathered their nerves. You could just feel the uneasy aura surrounding all the little denizens.

Snatcher sighed, he stayed on his side of the bridge just in case his minions wanted to run. With the barrier out, he's their only way back to safety.

When the large group reached the wall of ice, she realized how clear it was now. That odd galaxy barrier was no longer there, and the icicles that blocked her path seemed broken. No climbing or jumping, just a quick walk to the end. At that end, you could clearly see a mound of snow that was at least Julia's height.

"Oh god, that mound is going to take forever.." Julia looked at it then the minions and dwellers. "The dwellers can fly ahead and take a look around, make sure nothing looks suspicious." She called out, then looked to the smaller group, the four minions from earlier multiplied by four more; In total sixteen minions surrounded her.

They held their shovels up and were ready to go, Julia was tossed one as well as Gabriele. The two took the front and started to dig. Kero and Lynn watched as the two humans tried not to shiver from the sheer cold.

"Hey.." Lynn tried to start a conversation, however, Kero didn't bother to look her way "I know we've.. had a little disagreement back then.. and I just want to say.." Lynn held her arms "I'm... I'm sorry."

Kero wore an expression that said, 'I don't want to talk to you, but now I have too' "I'm still angry about that. About how you pushed me down." Kero glared at her "You were being mean and then you tried to destroy the world." He didn't even know her for very long when everything had gone up in flames "you hurt my friends and my mama!"

Lynn was quiet, she looked down; Kero looked away but then sighed after a moment "but if mama is giving you a second chance... then I guess I'll trust you for now." Lynn looked up a little happy to hear this. At least he was going to give her a chance too.

"I promise I won't let you down." Lynn smiled at him "Just watch, I'm gonna do my best in this fight!"

Kero slightly smiled too, her enthusiasm was starting to affect him. "We just have to be really careful though. The lady in this house is super crazy.."

"You.. said earlier that you lived and died in the swamps.." Lynn questioned, tilting her head "Did you know what the queen was like before all of.. this..?" She moves her hands around gesturing to the snow.

"Yeah.. she used to be super nice.." Kero looked up at the manor.

The two kids started more conversations with each other to pass some time, Julia and Gabriele kept working at the wall of snow along with the Minions. The two adults managed to make a good dent in it as the doctor started talking "So, Julia.." the girl huffed as she hurled away another gathering of pure white snow. "You wanted to.. talk about something..?"

"Yeah.." She stopped for a moment to get her hands warmed up again. Being in the cold with just a vest to cover her shoulders was not a smart idea. "It's about.. well... you."

"Me?" Gabriele looked at her, "what are you getting at with this..?"

Julia sighed, "I half expected you to stop following us after we reached Subcon." She looked at him before taking another clump from the wall "I know how much you hate Moon, and I know you don't want me to go into this building.."

"I don't want you to do a lot of things, Yes this is true.." Gabriele started working again "I do hate the person you admire the most for personal reasons.." he gripped the handle even harder as he talked about the puppeteer who ruined his life "I'm scared of what might happen when we step inside, but I promised your cousins I'd keep you safe!" He was a man of his word after all. "It's my job to protect you now."

"But I don't need a protector right now!" Julia talked a little too loud, but no one looked their way. "I need a friend.. and what's a friend if I.. if I can't trust them. If I can't trust them to believe me when I say MoonJumper is a good guy now.."

This was about back then, about when they were talking in the Mafia headquarters. His wishes were for her to forget about Moon, to be strong. He told her to move on. Gabriele's thoughts still haven't changed since then and she was still worried about it now. What will he do, is what's making Julia's mind go into a panic.

By the looks of things, MoonJumper will be at his weakest.

He looked at Julia, her face was mixed with frustration, hurt, and fear as she kept preoccupying herself with the snow. She didn't want to look at him, Julia was scared she was going to start yelling at him.

Julia didn't want to; In general, he's a nice guy, and he has his own opinions with problems. Very difficult problems. Though, how he might react to those problems might mean her dad getting hurt or not.

He noticed this and sighed, "Julia.. if, and for this one moment.. you say that monstrosity has changed.." Julia glances over at him, making more and more progress with the snow. "I'll give you the benefit of the doubt." Gabriele put his hands on her shoulders to make her look at him fully "but if you are proven wrong, this may be the last you'll ever see of me.." he placed one hand on her cheek "and I don't wish for that to happen..."

He was just starting to enjoy being around lively, and outgoing people.

"I promise you, he has." She looked at him dead in the eyes "and if he tries anything, I won't let him get you." Then.. she hugged him; she was happy Gabriele was going to at least try. Despite his hate for MoonJumper, he was going to do this for her, because he was her friend. The doctor said so himself didn't he?

Gabriele was at a loss for words as the smaller human gripped him in what would be a crushing hug if he had bones. What made her even happier was that he hugged back.

They were both going to try; both help and protect each other when the time actually comes, to stand by each other's side. Hopefully, nothing will change their minds later on.

Kero and Lynn watched the conversation from afar, the little girl whispered to the potato sack child "I think he's in love."

Kero nervously giggled "What..?" He was confused.

* * *

A couple of hazards came and went. Those creepy headless statues had found their way through the large wall or waited to be dug up. Gabriele and Julia, along with Lynn's bombs she held in her cloak made quick work of them. The path was looking more and more clear as they could almost see the front door to the manor. Kero stood next to his mother, holding on to her leg for comfort.

The snow was starting to get to him. He was having a hard time keeping his breathing in check even though he didn't need to. Julia took a moment of a break to look down at him, a worried expression on her face. "..Kero, you sure you want to do this still..?" She spoke softly as to not make him more uncomfortable.

"I.. I'm... I'm good.." He looked at the snow then up at her "aren't.. you cold, mama..?" He asked as the child watched Julia shivered.

"Oh, I am.. I should have brought a coat with me.." Julia remembers most of her clothing was back at CC's place. In her defense, she was thinking about the desert more than a forest. She didn't realize it'd get overrun by Jack Frost's evil sister. "But all this work is making me warmer, I'll be okay! You got to worry about Lynn though," Julia looked back at the mustache child walking around in circles just to forget she was cold "She's a lot smaller than me, which means less body heat for her.."

Kero looked back as well, then back to his mother. A moment passed as the child walked away; he left to go help Lynn keep warm. Maybe they could make a fire?

"Julia, I think we're here," Gabriele announced, hitting the wooden steps of the manor. He might have used a little to much force and cracked the steps, but it was still usable. "Oh dear.."

Julia chuckled "property damage," looking up at the tower that had the attic, it could be seen clearly cocooned in MoonJumper's strings. That was a good sign, it means he's still holding on. However, the strings from before became less and less.

As she focused on the tower though, two more headless statues popped out from the sides causing Julia and Gabriele to jump back in surprise. Julia got in a stance and swung her bat, knocking the first one over and Gabriele came down with his shovel- cracking it in pieces. Gabriele's strength once again startles her, but Julia should have known. The second one was rearing behind him, however, Julia pulled him away and slammed a large wall into it, knocking it over.

She then proceeded to crack down on it with her bat. It's arm and leg detached as she watched it wobble around before going still. Julia's turned around and smiled, giving a thumbs up. Despite the scary look Gabriele had caught Julia making at the statue, she could be honestly adorable when she was happy.

'Adorable..?' Gabriele caught himself thinking.

"If I remember correctly, the front door should be locked.." Julia turned her attention to the front door, giving it a look "the way I and Melody got in before was through the back, in the cellar"

"That would take forever, though.." Gabriele scratched the back of his head "what do you suggest we do?"

Julia gave a mischievous smile, "We blow this thing off its hinges." Then she looked over to Kero and Lynn direction, "Lynn! Want to blow a door up!?"

"Heck yeah!" Was all you could hear from the snow. The quick crunching of footsteps started heading their way as soon as both the children had arrived "I'm ready!" The smaller girl smiled, forgetting that she was trying to once again stay warm.

From her sleeve, she held a bomb, but Julia held up a hand for a moment "when we blow this door down, there's no telling what might happen." The taller girl looked at her crew; Kero was still visibly nervous, Lynn was also nervous but she held her face with determination. Nobody could tell what Gabriele was thinking.

The cleanup crew stayed back at the entrance just to watch what will happen next. If something were to happen, they wanted to get ready and run. Julia and the rest turned to look at them, which caused the minions to start waving frantically as gestures of good luck.

Julia has been known to be incredibly lucky or incredibly unlucky; hopefully, Lady Luck won't mess with her today. Or Lady Fate. Getting stabbed was enough. Adjusting her hat and removing her eye patch to see clearly, she motions Lynn to set up the bomb. Obliged, the hooded girl swiped a match as she was getting ready.

Everyone quickly ran back a few feet, the sizzling of the wick counting down as the eventual boom followed. The windows shattered and the door blew clean open, along with some of the door's frame and walls connecting to them. Wood splinters kept falling before the smoke died, and then everything was quiet.

Julia and Lynn looked at each other with an expression that said, 'let's do it again!' But enough was enough. The manor's doors were open and Julia saw this place without the fear of being chased. At least, not yet. They were most definitely heard, and moving in quickly was the only option in hand.

They have to fight inside the manor, if there were more statues in there now, they'd really need to be careful. Keeping Vanessa inside was also an objective; but guessing that the front door was blasted open, that objective was already shot. Julia's face nearly derped out realizing this mistake.

She just really wanted to destroy Vanessa's property.

No one said she was super smart.

Just.. smart enough.

Come to think of it, if Vanessa hasn't heard the bombs from before while fighting was happening outside, who's to say she heard this?

Julia took the lead, recognizing the majority of the layout. They rounded a corner and she was immediately caught with a familiar sight. Only something was slightly different. When they approached the side of the house where you would come up from the cellar, the ice figure of a critter was nowhere to be seen, only shattered remains and half of an ice cocoon.

Something escaped.

Something was still alive.

"Everyone, stay close," Julia quietly announced.

Could that mean the other figures were still alive as well? No time to dwell on that now, passed the kitchen door, over to the locked room she remembered running trough, Julia led the group to the second floor's stairway. However, as the door opened the stairs could be seen covered in ice and a blast of cold air hit them. It seemed to get worse the higher they went.

Carefully taking steps, the group of people didn't want to slip. Falling down a flight of stairs is not on anyone's list of to do's.

"Guess this explains where all the ice came from," Gabriel said, looking at Julia.

"The broken window we were pushed from wasn't fully sealed.." the girl looked thoughtful "all the ice was falling from there, as the manor froze from the inside."

The entire second floor was looking more and more like outside, Icicles forming on the floor and ceiling and larger crystalline structure blocked some windows and doors. A hunting humming could be head further down the hallways. Writings on the wall that said 'My prince has returned' in scratches caused by claw marks.

The small hairs on Julia's neck started standing up, but only anger rose within her. She was starting to feel more agitated then fear as she completely forgot about the others. Julia wanted to run, to charge into the next level.

But Gabriele grabbed her arm, making her realize this intent she had was 'kill'. She blinked a couple of times to realize something was wrong with her. Lynn had wandered off somewhere as Gabriele whispered to his friend "are.. you alright..?"

The girl wore a face of confusion "I don't.. know..."

"Hey, Julia! Catch-" Lynn whispered out, tossing a small glistening object at the other girl, who immediately caught it without stumbling "think that might come in handy..?"

In the girl's hand was a small flat golden bracelet, with sapphires embedded into it as carved decorations of leaves danced around them. Lynn stole this from Vanessa's room. A possible charm for later... Julia smiled.

"It's considered stealing, but.." Julia clapped it around her wrist "Vanessa is not going to need it anymore.." She then looked to Kero "Never steal from anyone, okay baby?" Kero just nodded.

Thudding around the corner grabbed everyone's attention, the sound of something approaching. The group all got into a stance for fighting, Julia with her bat, Gabriele, and Kero armed with shovels; their abilities needed to have special qualifications to actually work, Kero needing swamp water. Gabriele knew Julia wanted to go all out so he didn't untie his neck, but he kept his mind on it.

Lynn was ready with small smoke bombs just in case. She couldn't afford to blow a hole on the second floor.

What surprised them, and not in a good way, was that it wasn't Vanessa. A Knight, similar to the two that were in the time rift tale, glared at them with glowing red eyes. She doesn't remember this guy being here. A halberd in hand, he slammed the hilt of it down in a way of getting ready.

The ghostly limbs made most of the suit of armor hover.

"Oh great, haunted armor.." Julia glared. Looked like some of Vanessa's guards were still kicking. "Right then."

"Lynn, Kero.." Gabriele whispered, to them "if you can go for the legs, we'll deal with the arms.." He kept studying its appearance, the way it stood, and held itself. If they're lucky, the Knight doesn't know it's dead, and putting itself back together is less likely. "Get ready with the smoke bombs.."

The moment Lynn lit the fuses, she threw them at the guardsmen, who immediately blocked himself from them thinking there would be a boom and shrapnel. Though, when smoke rose, the two adults charged. Hearing their quickened footsteps, the Knight swung his weapon towards the front. Nearly missing Julia and slightly grazing Gabriele. The attack stung him, but the doctor kept going.

However, as the swing ended, Kero and Lynn ran in to kick at the leg. A good swing from Kero knocked over the right leg, sending it scraping across the floor. Lynn was having a little more trouble before realizing nothing could stop her from lighting firecrackers in the plated boot.

The echo of the continued crackling startled the Knight, making him lose balance with a grunt. He had caught himself with the halberd, and once he realized his leg was missing, an angry growl echoed throughout him. The firecrackers still went off as he balanced on one leg and lunged at the smaller girl; it missed her body but pined her cape to the ground.

"My cape!" She shouted, tugging hard on the fabric, ripping could be heard but it didn't budge. "Help! I'm stuck!" Her heart pounded as the Knight attempted to grab the child. Gabriele intervened and pulled her away, the cape is torn away and ruined.

First casualty.

"My apologies, but be thankful that wasn't your head." Gabriele set her down and got back to the fight. Lynn just spaced out, staring at the beloved cape she had worn for so long. A switch was flipped, and she was mad.

The Knight then made his way to pick up his weapon, as Julia appeared beside the guardian, thwacking his side enough to put a dent. He staggered to one side while Gabriele appeared to the left and smacked his left arm off. An arm and a leg was down, a boot that was still on fire and an angry grip on the right.

Kero ran to Lynn's side to make sure to keep each other safe while the adults kept hammering the metal plating. The Knight was stubborn, more then Julia, and she considered herself pretty stubborn.

With a sudden jab, Gabriele was caught and pinned to the wall through his chest. He cried out in pain as the piercing stings his entire upper body. Julia looked back with panicked eyes, she thought he couldn't get hurt! She started to breathe heavily as the taller girl just yelled out in anger.

She ran towards the Knight who wasn't expecting a wall to flank him on the right side of his head, then a bat swing up as he fell knocking him over to the right. She stood over him as the Knight held up a hand to block another swing, but instead, he was met with strings that wrapped around his forearm and brutally ripped the rest off, sending it crashing out one part of a window.

Lynn came running in and took the opportunity to kick his head away like a soccer ball; it hurt her, but by god did that make her feel a little better. The group huffed and Gabriele did his best to remove the halberd that stuck him to the wall. Julia frantically ran over to his side as Kero helped Lynn up.

"Gabriele, oh god-" Julia looked at him while her eye stung badly. She couldn't understand how this could hurt him, she thought he couldn't feel. "Are you going.. to be okay?" Her voice was hushed, almost scared to talk.

"Once this.." he hissed "bladed object is removed from my chest.. yes." He kept a firm grip on the hilt, but It wouldn't budge, Julia grabbed the end and together they pulled away. The slick sound of slicing was heard when it was finally removed and Gabriele slid to the floor.

"It's one thing to take blunt attacks, they don't hurt.." Gabriele held his opened seams "it's another when the very thing keeping you together gets slashed." Naturally, strings and cotton can be pulled apart, stuck back together; but when something close to a nervous system gets cut? It can be very painful.

"MoonJumper had to keep us in line somehow, I assume.." Gabriele thought. When he had first found out about it, it wasn't a good time.

"Blades are your weakness!?" Julia fretted over him, trying to see if she could help stitch up his chest.

"Well, anything that... could pierce, not necessarily blades.." that's why he's always careful when carrying knives and surgical equipment. He should probably invest in a bag later now that he thinks of it. "Depending.. on how hard it pierces, is how much it.. will hurt." Since he took a halberd point-blank, he must be in very excruciating pain. "Just.. give me... a moment."

Julia looked to her hand as she then saw Gabriele fumble around to find his sowing needle in his coat. He couldn't seem to remember which side it was on. Taking no time, Julia unexpectedly startled him by sowing up his wound with her own stronger strings. The room got quiet when he suddenly made a noise that sounded like a surprised squeal. This caused Julia to stop halfway and look at him as if she just hurt him more.

"I- I'm sorry! Did I hurt you!?" She yelled, Freezing up.

Embarrassed that he actually made that kind of noise, he covered his face, letting her continue "N-No, No I'm... I'm a-alright." He didn't want to admit that it.. tickled. Completely embarrassing.

Julia was still worried once she was done, he still held his face but eventually, Gabriele stood up. However, the moment of peace was interrupted when the armor they thought they took out started shaking and slowly putting itself back together.

"Oh, come on!" Julia shouted.

"Everyone, go- Go!" Gabriele yelled as Lynn and Kero looked at each other.

At this rate, if they keep fighting, it would take a lot longer for Julia to get to Moon. Kero, who was still terrified of the ice surrounding him, held a knowing face at the no longer hooded girl. She nodded, running up to grab a piece of armor, one of the legs, and shouted out with Kero.

"Guys! What are you doing!?" Julia yelled at them.

"Distracting him!" Kero yelled back.

"Over here, you ectoplasmic tin can!" Lynn yelled, running in the opposite direction and down the stairs. The two started a game of keep away.

The Knight, as expected, follows them. Julia quickly chucked the halberd outside the window before the Knight could get any ideas. This prevented the Knight from stabbing them.

"They'll be alright, as long as they don't go outside." Gabriele held a hand on Julia's shoulder "let's go deal with the Queen and get... MoonJumper.. back."

Julia looked at him, a shocked expression on her face. She knew he was giving him a chance, but saying his name was not... expected.

* * *

MoonJumper was held, halfway encased in ice. Almost like a clear crystal. Arms locked in place as Vanessa hummed to herself, The special being the represented dreams lifted his eyes slowly to glare at his ex. He was getting tired, he didn't know how much longer he could stay away. How long had it been? He couldn't remember.

But only one thing matters;

Julia was safe.

She could finally live her life how she saw fit; No one trying to control her, or tell her what she could and couldn't anymore.

He wondered if she was happy.

She has to be.

The doors to the attic suddenly smashed open, the ice and strings that blocked it were destroyed and a familiar yell cried out;

"Property Damage!"

MoonJumper was awake, not by much, but enough to see who had started a commotion. Vanessa yelled back in a challenging manor.

"You dare barge into my home and treat it like some rowdy festival!?" She pointed, not noticing the second person sneaking around to get to Moon.

"If you don't like your doors being slammed open," Julia smiled, twirling her bat "you should see what we did to your front door!"

Julia then took a quick glance at MoonJumper, seeing that Gabriele had made it to him. She was going to make enough noise to let him chip away to his prison. Vanessa's aura was just as intense as before, but compared to what she's managed to do, Julia actually believes she could take her on.

"Look, Vanessa, was it?" Julia glared at her, the girl's messed up eye becoming the center of attention "I'm here to bring Moon home, you need to stop this."

"You stay away from my prince, you harlot!" Gabriele had to stop himself from making a noise, if he yells out now, he'll give his position away. How dare she! "And It's Queen to you!"

"I don't know what a harlot is, but I feel insulted." Julia announced, her obliviousness was showing "just let him go, you caused him enough pain- you cased every one enough pain!"

Clearly she could hold a conversation, but she was still... a jack ass. Julia will do her best but she doesn't know if she could keep her emotions in check.

Gabriele listened to the two ladies talk, but then immediately heard MoonJumper cough. "Gabriele..?" After all this time the man from the horizon still remembers his name. "Why are you here..? Why are.. you _helping me_..?"

"I'm not doing this for you," he quietly chipped some of the ice away, it was a lot harder then it looked "I'm doing this for Julia because I hate seeing her being tortured by her own thoughts."

Julia, That was her-?

"Julia! What are you doing back here!?" MoonJumper yelled sending Gabriele into a panic after they noticed the two looking back at them.

"Who are you!? Stay away from him!" Vanessa yelled, a wave of ice came towards the two men but Julia had risen a wall. The ice hit the barrier creating another protective wall. "What!?"

"Don't you even think about it!" Julia yelled. She dispersed the wall and pointed at her "You have no right to be acting the way you are!" Julia stepped close, feeling more of the intensity around the ex-queen.

"My prince is serving time for cheating and lying to me!" The hunched over mass yelled back "all of those who enter my house to free him are traitors! Those who deserve punishment as well!"

Julia snapped back "cheating, lying!?" She understood the Queen was upset for the misunderstanding, but keeping a grudge for the longest time, without knowing the full story of what really happened was her pushing point. "What I see in front of me is no Queen! Only a spoiled child having a tantrum!" She swung her arm to the side "do you have any idea how much he loved you!?"

The Queen was fought off guard, being called a child, and being accused of having a tantrum was not something he hears every day. What even surprised her more was that this.. this miscreant! Stepped closer instead of running away like the others. The Queen was going to take that!

She once again shot out a wave of ice, but Julia blocked it again with a barrier. Enraged, she threw her bat, just nearly missing the lady's head. Vanessa made the mistake of following where the aluminum object flew out the window, only to turn back around to feel that Julia head-butted her in the forehead.

She stumbled backward as she held her head, and Julia yelled again "do you have any idea what you've done!? You destroyed your kingdom over a petty misunderstanding! Everyone you knew is either a frozen sculpture or a wandering spirit!"

"You are not a Queen, and you don't deserve to be one!" Julia's voice echoed through it the room, Gabriele making quick work of the ice prison while MoonJumper watched with amazement. What has.. become of his daughter..?

Vanessa, who finally stopped taking emotional hits from someone who shouldn't even know any of this, backhands Julia. A loud clack signified a slap, the human girl's face turned red from pain as the queen started up a cyclone of ice and snow.

That was it, something inside her head broke with that slap. There was that look again, that terrifying look that screamed 'murder' as she clamped hands with the queen to attempt to hit her again. Her own strength twirled around her in neon green strings as it soon exploded into something else. The red strings that held her soul together prime apart from the force alone.

Vanessa was pushed back as Julia yelled again "do you think I'm joking!? I understand that I'm an idiot sometimes, but nobody is that self-centered and idiotic!" She forced her another inch, Vanessa slid back. "Maybe you should feel what it's like to be frozen, encased in ice and to watch those you love, disappear!" Julia's stolen charm snapped and shattered, ice formed over her hands and it wasn't coming from the ex-queen.

A cold, heartless voice rung out as the Vanessa watched the ice creep up her shoulders, "oh wait.. you don't have anyone left. They're all dead."

Vanessa screamed out in a panic, trying to undo what was happening, but she had no control over the ice that formed over herself. Once it was over, Julia snapped her hands away. She looked at herself, the intense aura now forming around her, the girl's hands shook violently as she couldn't think properly. Heavy breathing attempted to suffocate her as she screened out. Why was she crying, why could she stop, what was happening?

"Julia!" Gabriele screamed out to her, but she couldn't hear him. Ice raged around her like the dancing flames of his past life, he couldn't lose her, not like Amalia!

The doctor rushed in, over the wall of ice and into a storm of broken emotions, she was having an attack. The shards cut at his body, bringing pain, but he kept moving until he was head to head with his friend who was kneeling down on the ground. Julia's fingers dug into her head and he tried to pull her hands away.

"Julia! Look at me! _I'm here_!" He held her head, trying to force her to look up "it's over! You did it, Julia! _Look at me_!"

Julia's tear shot eyes finally snapped open to look at the plague doctor, what had she done..? Something that was unavoidable it seemed. Gabriele held her tightly as she loosened up, they embraced for the longest time until the winds died down. Though, it didn't stop her from crying.

Moon floated beside them, lowering himself so that the troubled girl could see him. She only cried more as she reached out to him.

He was free.

She was free.

But at what cost?

Julia started to lose consciousness in his arms, as the two children finally made their way to the attic. Not alone however as Snatcher had made his appearance, he stood shocked at the sight before him. The two children were a concern, Kero was crying thinking his mother wasn't breathing. Gabriele held him in the reassurance that she was just sleeping.

And she was.

MoonJumper held Julia to Gabriele as he too was starting to lose the ability to stay up straight, but Snatcher caught him. He thanked him quietly as everyone started their descent out of the manor. The ice that was being controlled by the Queen stopped and started to melt.

It already started to feel warmer.

As they walked outside, Julia came to for just a moment to see someone standing just beyond the manor's tree line. A tall figure with a mask that looked like no other she'd see before stared back with another bush like creature sitting beside them.

Before she could even confirm that was real, she lost her thoughts again and fell asleep.

* * *

_Somewhere deep in Subcon, an ice wall melted away revealing a lost cavern. A small green bush being popped it's head out, sniffing this new world. It made a snorting sound with its mouth as it ventured off into the unknown._

* * *

**Current Guess Characters:**

**Aura** _and_ **Neo** _who belongs to my best bud ~~(mom)~~ Winttiagloam from Tumblr! (and other sites but mostly Tumblr.)_


	10. Eye of a Storm

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got some good news! the fever that was threatening to form finally went down and I hope it stays down. I still feel a little bit off, but I was able to sleep a lot yesterday. Seemed like the previous chapter was a tad bit confusing to you guys and I did go back and fix a lot of spelling errors and added a (hopefully) good explanation in this chapter. I'm now using a new spelling apparatus called Grammarly, so maybe that will tone down the sudden single missing letter errors.

**(Chapter Ten: Eye of a Storm)**

With Vanessa encase in ice created by an emotional bomb and a broken, Subcon was starting to feel a little less.. tense. The fight left the attacking team with a few scars, ripped clothing, and unforgettable trauma. It seemed like an everyday thing, to be honest. Julia was laid out on Snatcher's carpet inside the tree, along with MoonJumper who sat on the ground against the wall.

He looked at his daughter, who had been out cold for a day and a half but breathing. Meanwhile, Gabriele inspected the puppeteer's fatigue, he was still pretty low.

"Nothing rest won't fix.." Gabriele added stepping away to keep an eye on Julia. He looked at her still form and was reminded again about his past. "Amalia.," he whispered under his breath. Gabriele would say he's good at keeping thoughts down, but that would be a lie. Ever since that day, that was all he could think about.

What he could have done, and if only Gabriele was faster.

The being by the wall looked over at the doctor, questions floated around MoonJumper's head that wanted answers, "I thought you were destroyed.." MoonJumper squinted his eyes in confusion "how.. how are you still in one piece after all this time..?"

Gabriele didn't acknowledge him right away but then turned his head to look back. "I was helped, by an unsuspecting friend." Was all he said.

"But... I must know.." Moon spoke up again, one more question he needed to ask "were you... able to save that lover of yours?"

"...No." Gabriele looked down. His fists clenched and opened to keep his mind off his want to righteously punch the man who did this to him. "That's how I was able to escape you. Your contract was rendered null."

Which meant, Gabriele suffered for no prize in return. MoonJumper was a changed man now, he knew what he did was unforgivable, Gabriele was one of his many regrets. Truth be told by MoonJumper however, "I made that contract in hopes you'd get that chance to save her.." he held his hand to where his heart would be "I am truthfully, terribly sorry... I thought giving you a body that could not be infected, would save her."

"Why do I find that hard to believe." Gabriele looked away, no longer wanting to talk to him. Apologies won't bring his life back. Saying sorry won't bring her back.

"Hey! You two-" Snatcher stopped to look at the current mood setting on his home. It was rather.. depressing all of a sudden. "Okay, wow. What did you guys do..?" The purple ghost then shook his head, now was not the time "So, anyway... I managed to drag that witch icicle to the cellar! Sealed all possible exits with magic, and boom!" Snatcher expressed with his signature smile "If Vanessa thaws out, she not going anywhere." They had taken the time to raid the manor, retrieve those who had been lost and encased. Kero's biological parents were among the few. Proper burials will be planed soon.

"How ironic to leave her there of all places.." MoonJumper smiled, amused by this. Its well deserved.

With that news over with, Snatcher then gave Moon a look. It wasn't a nice one either "Oh, I've been wanting to tell you off for while Moon boy." The purple ghost got closer to him, not only that but he pulled Julia's soul out of her body. MoonJumper couldn't believe he was able to do that.

"Release her!" Gabriele shot up, ready to fight this man.

"Calm down, Doc. I'm not going to hurt her!" Snatcher yelled, looking at him, then his attention was back on MoonJumper "you see this!?" He pointed to the medium-sized green soul.

It was warped, glitched and broken. Cracks had formed where his strings had strangled her. Though that was just the thing now, Julia's soul was no longer tied up; the emotional power surge that left her, broke herself free. Her soul was now fair game, however, that was if anyone wanted it. Julia's soul was too broken to even be worth anything, MoonJumper had no idea she was under this much pressure.

Her eye was another question he wanted to ask, but with how she performed at the manor, it was safe to say he understood.

"Do you have any idea what you've done!?" Snatcher yelled back at him. MoonJumper closed his eyes, too ashamed to even look at yet another one of his mistakes "open your eyes, don't you dare look away until I put her soul back!" Snatcher snapped at him.

"I only wanted to protect her!" MoonJumper yelled back, but he started coughing, unable to speak louder than a whisper for the moment.

Snatcher eased up his voice a bit, but he was still harsh "oh yeah, good job! I didn't know to suffocate her was called 'protecting'." Slowly, Snatcher then placed the girl's soul back, looking at how calm she appeared to be "leave the contracts to me next time. How about this, you should stop making contacts in general." He pointed at him.

Gabriele was unsure what he witnessed, That.. thing was what Julia's soul looked like? It explains why she was so... different now but was the worst over? Was she going to go back to how she was? He hoped so. He much preferred that smiling face, then when she was always angry.

* * *

Julia felt.. strange. Like she was floating, but she wasn't. Where was she? Was she in her dream space? No.. it looked too much like.. Subcon? No- wait.. what happened? Why was her left arm missing!? She was slightly see-through, almost like a ghost, was she dead!? Oh god, she has to be dead this time!

No, hold on.

This feeling was familiar.. was she.. she couldn't be- Julia, ever since she was back home, was unable to use her astral projection to walk around while she was asleep. In all honesty, she thought it was a crazy fever dream every time she did it as a child. Why now of all moments?

Why was she in the middle of Subcon, wasn't she with Gabriele and the others? Where was her body..? Wasn't she supposed to be chained to it by MoonJumper's strings? The girl couldn't bring herself to worry about this, she was too tired to even think properly.

In the distance, she heard yelling, but those weren't familiar voices to her. Peeking from behind a tree, she saw a boy runoff, he looked rather distressed. Wait, she'd seen him once before; even if it was just a moment. Julia wanted to follow him, she was curious, does this mean her mind wondered farther then she realized..? That's never happened before- at all!

She was, in actuality, spirit, so she had no fear of being seen, or was able to interact with anything. She was merely a spectator. Though, because of these thoughts, she was unprepared for what followed next. The boy turned around quickly, panicked and at the ready to lash out with his weapon, which appeared to be a yo-yo.

Julia looked back with wide-eyed surprise, no, he couldn't see her.. could he? The boy looked just as stunned as she, but mostly because he was looking at her arm and her face. She lifted her right hand to feel around the area that grabbed his attention, and it would seem it wasn't only her left arm that was missing, but a part of her face as well. Her left eye and the part of her head that held her left ear were gone.

"I- I uh..-" the boy spoke, words failing him, he was already under so much pressure as he rubbed his face. He was a mess. But looking at herself? Her hat was missing, her hair was undone, Julia had just come from a fight so her face was bruised from the slap she received. She's missing a few pieces of herself for god sake! Compared to him, the tall girl was the only one that looked like a mess.

Julia tried to speak back, but no sound left her mouth that the boy could hear. He raised a brow at her, and Julia frowns. Right, just a spectator...

"As.. much as.." the boy hesitated, "...I want to talk to you, I can't- I'm in a hurry right now!" He looked up at her with a pained expression "Snatcher has my Captain, I- I.."

Julia knew where this was leading to, he was just starting his end fight in his world; she crouched down to his height to grab his attention. She held her thumb up and mouthed the words of encouragement:

_'Kick his ass.'_ As she smiled.

He took a moment, surprised still lingering, he held his chest. The boy seemed to nod, but before he turned to run again he had to know..

"Are you... Julia..?" The boy asked, hopeful.

The girl kindly smiled back, A quick nodded to confirm this. Julia wondered how he had heard about her name? Now was not the time to hold him back though, Julia then stood to her full height and point off as if to say:

_'go get him!'_

The boy took off, not before taking one last look at her. He was unsure about this encounter.

Julia watched the boy disappear, She thought to herself, how was she going to get back? The only assumed answer was that she should just..

"The sun rises, rises! Time to wake and shine.." Julia jolted back from surprise, no- what was he doing here?! "And when you wake! You'll confide where you've hidden the master!"

Zephyr jabbed his hand through Julia's chest, making her puff away like smoke, He laughed to himself quietly. "Found you, little diamond.."

* * *

"Jesus Christmas!" Julia shot up and yelled, startling everyone in the room. MoonJumper who had been asleep against the wall, alongside Lynn and Kero on the chair, was startled awake as Snatcher and Gabriele looked at the girl. She meant to say Jesus Christ, but for some odd reason, she yelled Christmas. The sudden dizziness of vertigo hit Julia hard, making her lurch forward and covered her mouth.

The purple ghost noticed this action with panic, grabbed Julia by arms, quickly carried her away and out of his tree. In the distance, you could hear an unpleasant sound of Julia emptying her stomach. The sudden recall and vertigo was not a pleasant mix. It was almost like riding a roller coaster if you had a weak stomach.

Gabriele quickly stood at the edge to make sure she was okay, He saw Snatcher's face twist into disgust by the fact he had witnessed Julia lose her insides over the fence. Sometimes, Snatcher was happy he wasn't alive, getting that sick was something he doesn't miss.

"Julia! Are you all right!?" Gabriele called out, he heard coughing from her and then an audible intake of air.

"I'm..- I'm okay!" Julia called out. "Wish I had some water though..-"

She was, for the most part, fine. Many things were going on through her mind at the moment, just when Julia had thought that fighting Vanessa was going to be the end. Zephyr just had to make his appearance again, of all the opportunities, it had to be when the two main magic users were at their weakest.

Except for Snatcher, he was fine.

Julia slowly made her way back to the tree, The larger ghost keeping an eye on her to make sure she doesn't keel over. "Gabriele, I've got some terrible new..-" she huffed looking at him with worried eyes. "I- I think... Zephyr has a lock on me."

Kero perked up at this, scared out of his mind "Wha- What?! He's still alive!?"

"Okay, you two have mentioned this 'Zephyr' guy once before," Lynn folded her arms "who is he!"

"Julia.. what is going on..?" MoonJumper looked at her with a very concerned face, what was this about the crazy jester he wondered.

Julia looked at him, still worried, but also tired "So! A lot of things have happened for four years..-"

"Four years?!" MoonJumper was at a loss, he had been stuck in that attic for four years? How had he managed for so long? He had missed so much...

"Well, let's go beat this guy up too!" Lynn yelled, she was ready for another fight, But Julia sternly looked at her.

"Absolutely, not!" It was one thing to go fight Vanessa, luckily Lynn wasn't there during Julia's episode. Fighting Zephyr is another conversation she didn't want to have! "That.. thing.. is too sporadic to fight properly!" Zephyr was always in the air, never once had she seen him on the ground for too long. "I could be fast in the air if I had my motorbike." Julia trailed off as Lynn just puffed her cheeks out from being denied.

Gabriele stepped up to her "Then that would mean a three day trip from here, and another back," the others looked at the two "who's to say he isn't already here?"

"If he's after me, then leaving will give you some time to prepare!" Julia looked at him, but the doctor was confused.

"Don't tell me.." Gabriele sighed, looking at her "You're going back even if we had a say, aren't you..?"

"Oh yeah." Julia softly smiled

Snatcher sighed, if this 'Zephyr' was enough to make MoonJumper concerned, then she'd probably have a better chance if he helped out instead. Snatcher could make it to a place and back in a snap. Quite literally.

Okay, maybe not literally, but Snatcher was a fast flyer. After seeing what had been done to this girl, Soul and all, it's the least he could do. "I'll take her."

Julia took a moment before turning around, "... I'm sorry, huh..?" She looked at the ghost who wasn't joking around for once.

"I said, I'll take you." He sneered at her perplexed expression "Wow, kid. I didn't know you were hard of hearing too." He then shot a challenging smile at her.

Julia gasped at him "you listened here, you pasta reject!"

MoonJumper, Gabriele, and the kids watched the two as they fought. Throwing words at each other, as Snatcher grabbed Julia by the collar. The girl was unprepared to be thrown onto his back, but once she had gotten a hold of herself, she realized just how.. soft he was?

"What the hell..?" She whispered with confusion, feeling his head.

"You two." Snatcher pointed at Gabriele and Moon "I can't believe I'm saying this, but keep an eye on my forest!" Since he's going on a trip with Julia, who he'd gladly drop into the ocean for a laugh, he'd need someone to at least keep things in place. "Kero, keep the Swamp cleared too."

Kero nodded as he got up from the chair. "Bye, mama!" The child waved, looking at Julia.

"Bye, baby! I'll be back soon!" Julia waved back, she then turned her attention to Lynn. "We should probably bring you back home too.."

"Oh, you got to be kidding me.." Snatcher looked already done.

"We have to bring her back to Cooking cat!" Julia looked at him "She can't stay! Unless you want her to live here too?"

Snatcher was defeated.

"Juli.." Julia looked to MoonJumper, even after everything, the girl still refused to stay in one spot for long "please, you don't have to do this.."

The girl just smiled back, however, "But I do. You've done so much for me, dad!" She was still unaware of the condition her soul was in, or maybe she just didn't care "I want to look out for you now.. its the least I can do!"

Moon held his expression, to hide his hurt. Despite the problems, what he's done, the pain that he has caused to a majority of folks. She was still the same little girl he knew. The one who looks up to him. That girl who could keep smiling even when she kept falling.

_She'll be fine._

"At least, before you go... take your things!" Julia blinked a couple of times after she remembered what he meant. Her hair was still undone, her hat and recently retrieved bat was against the wall. "You will need them.."

Gabriele had quickly handed the objects to the girl, and before Snatcher took off while Julia was tying her hair up, MoonJumper added "When this is all over. We have.. a lot of things to catch up on.."

* * *

The sun was nearly beyond the horizon, in an instant, Snatcher had already cleared half the desert. In another two hours or more, they could reach the small town that was just by the ocean. The two girls held on with all they had by how fast the ghost was moving.

"So, don't you think you're putting Mafia Town in danger kid?" Snatcher asked, keeping his head forward to see. "If Moon boy is worried about this Zephyr character, you think those idiots have a chance?"

"Probably not!" Julia called over the wind, she didn't plan on staying long. Grabbing her things and probably a quick bite to eat, that should do it for her. "But hopefully, we could get back before he shows up! How do you feel about carrying a motorbike?"

"I already don't like carrying you, carrot head." He said with a smug grin, he could see the edge of the small town already.

This was going to be a long ride.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Current Guest character:
> 
> Tie from A Hat and Tie in Time
> 
> I wanted to keep this chapter a little short, but it still meets my criteria of words. So, I guess no more supper long chapters because it gets confusing... However! I just had to add something special to this chapter! For so long there was only slight quick interaction between Julia and Tie where they don't actually talk (I mean, they still didn't really talk because I didn't want to intrude in their story) and I wanted them to just... Interact for a second. Stuff in my story is going to start to escalate soon as well, so- yeah.


	11. New and Old Faces

**(Chapter Eleven: New and Old Faces)**

Lynn looked out with wonder, as much as she was uncomfortable about falling off, ride on the back of a large ghost was pretty awesome! The child took a glance next to her, Julia had somehow fallen asleep during the trip. At first, it seemed like she didn't care if she fell or not, but taking a closer look, Julia had a death grip while she was out cold. How was she doing that? It's rather impressive to sleep and still manage to keep a hold on something.

Lynn couldn't help but worry about the oncoming situation at hand... Will Subcon be okay? Will Mafia Town be okay? Well, she wasn't too worried about the Mafia, a few less of them around wouldn't hurt. Those were her thoughts though.

Snatcher was halfway past the ocean now, the sun was almost setting, It was starting to get irritating to try and look out ahead. Just beyond the horizon, however, something crossed the sky. At first, he thought it might have been some form a gleam from the bright sphere in space. It could have been a comet, but then it would have fallen all the way... whatever it was, it stopped.

There was a moment of silence in his head, as he grew suspicious.

* * *

Gabriele had gotten as far away as he could from the part of the forest which was set ablaze for some reason. Fire made him uncomfortable back then, and it still makes him very, very uncomfortable now. "Hah... Keep in eye on the forest.," he mumbled to himself. Out of everyone Snatcher could have told that to, it was him. The same person who that large ghost was trying to get rid of back then.

He wondered if Julia was going to be okay, Gabriele should have gone with.. what was he thinking?!

What was he thinking?

The plague doctor had found himself past the manor's bridge, and near the swamp, where he spotted MoonJumper chatting with Kero. To think, being captive for four years, and finding out your daughter somehow has a child to call her own.

The look on MoonJumper's face was.. Kind, and.. excited. Watching his new grandson talk about how Julia saved him, how she fought with Melody when the world was ending. Kero was happy when he spoke to the Puppeteer.

Gabriele sighed, how could anyone be so friendly to MoonJumper, and be okay with what he's done? The doctor sure wasn't, but he has to hide that fact now. He doesn't want to upset his friend.

Did that make him a good friend, though? Did that make him feel good himself? The doctor kept walking, he didn't want to keep thinking about it.

* * *

It was raining, night had fallen, and Julia had quickly gathered her things. Snatcher had told Julia to wait for him while he went to go check on something, so there the tall child was. Everything was still in place, her bag was 'mysteriously' fixed, but she assumed Cc had something to do about it.

"So.. you really don't want me to help you?" Lynn came in with a few sandwiches on a plate. She took a bite out of one currently in her hand. "Because I don't mind! Not like you're having a cool showdown or anything.."

Julia sighed with a smile, "Lynn, this guy gave me nightmares when I was a little girl.." she focused on the bag for a second to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything thing. "He faked his death in my dreams when I lost my dad.."

"So..?" Lynn raised a brow

"What I'm trying to say is," Julia looked at her, face with an unreadable expression "the dude is completely mental. I don't think he cares who he messes with." The thought of Lynn getting killed in a blink, bothered her. "This guy has no remorse. He'll use what he can to get to you."

The taller girl then stood up from her crouched position, looking down at the girl before taking a sandwich from the plate "besides, He could show up any moment now, and I need you here to protect Cooking cat."

Lynn thought for a moment, it was a fair point. She didn't want the only person who mothers her to be killed. She.. she liked Cc. Very much. It would hurt her if anything bad happened to the cat.

Julia scarfed down another sandwich before heading to her bike, She carefully moved it out of the house and onto the streets of Mafia Town. The rain still hadn't let up, but she didn't mind. Sure she wished she still had her umbrella, but seeing it on display made her feel.. special. Happy even that these idiots missed her.

Sticking her hat away, she clapped her biker helmet on and made sure her motorbike was in working order. The rev sounded good to her as she felt the warmth of the engine. Taking this time to strap the bag back onto her vehicle, she was suddenly stomped on.

"Dah-!" Her head was pushed down as she looked up to gigging, then a taunt.

A child with darker skin, a blue bow, and a green coat, with the same blue ruffled skirt, blew a raspberry at the taller girl. A rather rude attitude towards someone who she doesn't know.

Suddenly a Mafia man came running up, huffing and out of breath "little... girl stop!" He breathed out "Mafia is not... getting any younger.."

"What happened?" Julia looked to the man, not after watching the child run away "you okay?"

The man took a moment to regain himself, then looked to the Julia who was still masked in a helmet. "Little girl had fallen into mud, Mafia wanted to help clean, Mafia received punch to gut." He held his stomach, he wasn't looking too good "Mafia wanted to say how rude child was acting, but she kept running.."

Looking off in the direction the child ran. Some new kid just shows up out of the blue, and starts punching people... strange, normally it the Mafia that does the punching. She wanted to say they deserved it, but the guy wasn't looking well. He was also just trying to be nice...

"Don't worry, I'll get her," Julia said, muffled by her helmet. She revved up the bike and started moving, using her barriers to get into the sky. She quickly looked around to see if she could spot the blue bow child, and low and behold, there she was. Just about to cross the fountain area, Julia speeds up and headed down.

The child stopped to hear what the odd humming was, turning around she saw the masked stranger speeding up ever so often at her. The small child held an expression of fear as she started running again, but as she thought she could lose the biker after jumping a gap, she was caught by the scruff of her collar.

"Hey! Let me go!" Her voice sounded like Melody's, but slightly deeper.

"You sure about that kid?" Julia asked, making the child look down. They were currently over the edge floating on a single square barrier over the island cliff. "Because I couldn't care less about a rude little brat like you." She stated.

She hated how she started sounding more like Snatcher. Where was the Noodle anyways? He said he was going to come back...

"No, no, no! Never mind! I'm good!" The child panicked.

"Look, kid.." Julia sighed, looking at her through the visor, The child could only see herself looking back "you can't go around punching, and stepping on people here." The child kept looking at her, thinking of a way to escape "not sure if anyone told you, but the Mafia here are 'trying' to be 'nice' now." Keywords being trying and nice.

The child then suddenly lifted her free arm skyward, an action the was about to become familiar to Julia in a second. Everyone was suddenly shooting upwards, bike and all. Julia had a tighter grip on the child and the bike as she held the bow child close with her protests.

Originally, the child thought she could teleport away from the taller person but accidentally brought the stranger aboard. The captain was going to be so mad!

When they landed, Julia had lost her grip on the child and just... spaced out. Taking off her helmet slowly, thinking this was just another dream, Julia looked through clear eyes. The kid was back, this was Melody's ship!

* * *

After another quick round about the forest, and taking a detour around the part that was on fire, Gabriele has concluded that everything was going to be fine for the most part. MoonJumper was not around him, he had taken the liberty of keeping Kero company while the child kept the swamp entrance cleared.

Taking a look at his chest, the same area where he had been struck by that halberd, he could still remember what it felt like. The quick work of Julia's strings, however, did a good job of keeping it neatly sealed. Who would have thought the very ability he was scared of, would help him in the future?

Sure, the strings still bother him, but he's glad he didn't lose too much stuffing. Finding more would have been a serious pain in the neck.

"How fun, how fun!" Gabriele snapped his head up, his hat would have nearly fallen off if he hadn't caught it "The leader of hearts, broken and alone! Been while, doctor."

"And I would have rather kept it that way!" Gabriele shouted, taking a head start to run. What was Zephyr doing here!? It could only mean one thing, and the thought wasn't pleasant. He hid behind a tree for cover as he quickly looked for his sharp equipment. "So you've finally found us, hmm?"

"Oh! Oh! Yes, we wish to play! Zephyr will oblige, we will take care of you, one last problem keeping the master down!" Zephyr threw his signature attack, the glowing triangles were hurled at the tree, making Gabriele duck away from the recoil. "Where are you hiding him! Tell Zephyr, and we will make your suffering fast!"

"Like hell, I'll tell you!" Gabriele shouted, throwing a scalpel into the air at Zephyr, but his blade was deflected.

The Jester flew higher, he knew the doctor could only throw so far. "Well, well, the doctor thinks he so smart. How funny, how hilarious!" He twirled around in the air, "But sadly, you've chosen the painful route!"

The jester suddenly disappeared, like he was never there at all. Gabriele shot up, "A trick!" He yelled turning around but only to receive a punch to the face and a knee to his gut area. The doctor was caught off guard once again as he slid back.

"Now, now, just because Zephyr is a Wizard, doesn't mean we don't know how to brawl" he growls, hunched over and twisting his head to the side "Surprise, surprise! Was the doctor shocked? He better be!" Pulling an odd-looking blade from his pocket, it had an odd coating of color that was purple and blue.

Gabriele eyed the strange knife, then looked to Zephyr's ever taunting smile.

* * *

Julia smiled, it had been so long since she was on this spaceship! Putting her helmet down on her motorbike, Julia took in a deep breath and yelled.

"MELODY!" The bow child held her ears as the strange adult shouted out.

The stranger was announcing that she was on board, and she knew her captain's name!? The child was confused, but she then kicked the back of Julia's knee in making the taller girl buckle down with a yelp.

"Quiet!" She said, looking at the stranger with a very upset face "you're too loud!"

Julia got back up, She wasn't bothered when the girl she just called came bouncing out of her bedroom hallway. A loud squeal escaped Melody when she knocked over Julia once again in a hug. The same as every time, the wind was swept from her lungs as she hit the carpet.

"Julia! Holy stars! What are you doing here?" Melody kept talking a mile a minute "I thought you were dead! But you're not dead! You're still here!" The child hugged one last time "I've missed you!"

Julia could only laugh in this situation, she had never seen anyone so happy to see her. Even Kero wasn't this excited! Which now seems a little disappointing when Julia thinks about it.

"Hey, kiddo!" Julia smiled, patting her on the head "What the heavens are you doing back here?"

"Were on a classified mission!" The child with the blue bow spoke up "it doesn't concern you!"

Melody got up and smiled at her, the hatted child helped Julia up "its okay Bonnie! She knows what Timepieces are!" She held out a hand and pointed at the taller girl "this is Julia! You know, the one who helped me!" The child then turned to the taller girl, a smile on her face "apparently, there were more timepieces hidden here, this was way before I even arrived for the first time!"

It took a moment for the bow child to think about just who this was until the words finally sink in. The child, who was called Bonnie, then gasped with surprise, she just charley horsed Melody's figurative sister. "Ohmygosh-" The child held her face "I'm so sorry! You look nothing like how Melody explained you tp be!"

"I'm... guessing you're bow kid then?" Julia announced, holding out her hand, the taller girl had only heard about her once, But Melody was happy when she said her name "I was under the impression you'd be preppier.. but your just a little fire." Bonnie shook her hand rather fast.

"You can just call me Bonnie! No point now since my captain gave away my name-" the bow child gave Melody a brow raise, as if saying 'really?'. Melody just smiled at her.

"But yeah! Speaking of which, what happened to you?" Melody looked at Julia, "you look so different!" She then gasped, noticing her face was bruised "what did that!?"

"Hey, kid! What's taking you so.." Snatcher appeared from the wall that leads to Melody's room "Oh hey, pumpkin brat."

"You mother.." Julia looked at him "This is where you went!?" The girl yelled at the ghost "I was waiting in the freaking rain for you!"

Snatcher held up his hands "Hey! I wanted to make sure I wasn't seeing things!" He told her, looking at her irked face.

"Maybe you could have at least said 'hey!'" Julia held her arms up "'I think the kid is back!' Maybe I wanted to see her too!" She slapped her arms down, she was done. Julia has her things, she could ride her bike back down herself "Melody I'm going to go, do you have a parachute big enough for a bike?"

"Aw, what!?" Melody was saddened by Julia's want to leave "I mean, yeah.. for supply drops.." she pointed the way, Julia probably had something to do. Not like she couldn't come and visit later.

"Oh, Come on, kiddo!" Snatcher called after Julia, but he didn't attempt to move after her "Don't be like that!"

Melody leads Julia to a room she had not seen yet. It looked like a supply dock that had different types of mechanical contraptions she couldn't even think of what they could be. With all this excitement, she had forgotten that Zephyr was hunting her down. The taller girl gasped, he would have found her by now!

"Kid, I need that chute now!" Julia panicked.

* * *

There Julia was, falling into orbit. Helmet in place as she watched the world get closer and closer. Her aim will lead her directly in front of Snatcher's tree, and the parachute that was tightly secured will make a sudden pull when the right time comes to open it. Long story short, it's going to hurt her. Very much.

She'll just have to endure the pain like she always has though, Gabriele, MoonJumper, and everyone else in Subcon is in danger! Why did he not come after her? She was Zephyr's target! Unless...

"He used me as a waypoint!" Julia slapped her bike handle, he wasn't hunting her down, He used her as a marker to find Moon! Julia fumed, getting ready to pull the cord. "Damn it!"

Aggressively, Julia pulled the cord when she was in the range of her destination. The sudden jerk of the bike stopping made her hiss in pain, but she floated down enough to a point where she could cut the parachute off with her strings and aim for a barrier to ramp down. Once she hit the ground she sped up, then immediately tried to find either MoonJumper or Gabriele.

She wasn't happy with what she saw when she got past a certain point.

The girl skid to a stop, just beyond her was a body. Cut in half, and stuffing sticking out.

"Gabriele!" Julia shriek out, throwing her helmet to the side and running to her downed friend. He laid motionless, nonresponsive, "G..Gabriele..?" She whispered, "Come on.. say something!" She shook him, but it only resulted in more fluff to slide out. She quickly tried to keep him together but decided to leave him down.

Attempting to do anything more would make the situation worse. "What did he do to you." She whispered again.

"Why so blue? That's the doctor's color!" Julia bolted out of the way, Zephyr had launched an attack at her, and she looked back up in.. anger. "Oh my, oh my! Such a temper! Where has this fight been all this time?" Zephyr wasn't too far into the air, he leaned back like he was resting on a lawn chair, His leg folded over the other.

"Zephyr, you conniving little _shit!_ " She shouted, getting into a stance "come down here so I can kick your ass!" What did he do to Gabriele? Those thoughts kept running through her mind, she was angry, but she was also crying.

"Comply with where the master is, and we'll tell you what happened to your dear little doctor!" Zephyr ignored Julia's cries for a fight for just a moment, "if not, then my dear little diamond, Zephyr will give you what you desire."

"Piss off!" Julia yelled, she threw a barrier at him, but the Jester just moved out of the way.

"Boring, boringly, boring!" Zephyr taunted, taking his head off and laughed at her. "Zephyr has already seen that trick! Show us a different one! Show us!"

Julia growled out, the pain in her eye grew for just a moment. Though even as it stung her, she created a rather large barrier in front of her. Zephyr floated upright and tilted his head in his hands. What was this? It was just another barrier! The crazy doll just laughed at her, too busy to see that the entire things were cracking while she held her arms out.

The loudest clap Julia had ever given off triggered a massive shattering of shrapnel, all furling towards him. Zephyr panicked for a second, a most ridiculous scream came from him. He had dodged half of it, but some of the green shards pierced and ripped his skin. He looked like a pincushion.

"My, my.. that was new.." Zephyr mused, taking a few pieces of shrapnel off of him, only to watch them disappear. "That was familiar, yes, yes! Reminds Zephyr of himself." If he could smile any wider he would.


	12. Dream of Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise you guys, things will ease up when this chapter is over. The next chapter will slowly lead to the first DLC!

**(Chapter Twelve: Dream of Dreams)**

Zephyr placed his head back on and clapped his hands, he saw Julia lean to the side, that was his queue to come down. "Honestly, Little Diamond, after all this time and you still can't keep with yourself." Zephyr punched her, Julia was pushed back but she held her fists up. She noticed she had accidentally left her bat back on the ship when Melody toppled her over. "What were you doing all this time?"

Zephyr came and attempted to jab at her again, but Julia blocked with her arms. She leaned to the side and quickly took a swing at him, the Jester dodged. However, with the spin Julia had done to try and recover, she swung around lashed Zephyr's chest with her strings, ripping his clothing.

He cried out in shock, "Strings! Yes, Zephyr had forgotten you could use strings!" He growled, looking at her "you do not deserve the master's gift! How dare you use this kind of magic against us!"

As he was talking, Julia came in for a punch, knocking Zephyr down this time. The girl was about to lash out at him again while he was down, but he caught the strings and held on tightly to them. Julia roared at him, but he noticed that the child wasn't herself. He used this to his advantage.

"You're broken! Broke, broke!" He laughed at this, snapping her strings that weren't as strong as MoonJumper's "Just like the rest of us, just like we!" Zephyr got up punching her again, and again, and again "Do you understand? The pain? The suffering? No, you're too naive!" He kicked her down, and looked at her "Just because you've bested the master, doesn't mean you're indestructible!" There was a moment of silence as he watched her try and get up.

"Why the master chose you, we cannot say." He looked down at the weaker human, yes, just as weak "but surely, it was a mistake." He slammed his foot on her keeping her down, charging up another attack...

Julia was beating, bloodied, she looked up with one eye as the patch covered the other. How could a stuffed man beat her so terribly, why wasn't she ever strong enough to fight him back? Even with all this magic with her, she still can't fight back!

The tears didn't stop flowing from her face, One of her friends was incapacitated because she left him. She couldn't even avenge him for crying out loud!

Why?

Just why?

A shadow loomed over the two, Julia did her best to look up and she saw the crescent shape of a familiar head. Zephyr froze as he felt a menacing, strong aura from behind him. He turned around and faced MoonJumper's angry, fuming expression. Zephyr screamed out, backing away so Julia could see the full picture.

MoonJumper hated Zephyr, he hated this certain regret of a minion. Not only did he disobeyed orders in staying in his dreamscape, but he yet again finds him tormenting the person he holds dear.

"Do not. Lay. A single. hand more. On my daughter." He didn't yell, he didn't need to, Zephyr knew how strong he was, though he was unaware of MoonJumper's weakened state. However, he had finally regained enough, not very much, energy to at least take care of said regret.

"M-Master MoonJumper! Wha- what a pleasant- surprise!" Zephyr stuttered out, just nearly able to control the want to get out of there. "You- you are okay! Zephyr is pleased to see this!" He took a step back.

Julia sat up slightly with her arm, her head throbbed from the pain she felt. She watched just how scared Zephyr was of Moon, this was just like many years ago when she first met Zephyr.

Except for this time, she's going to whiteness something she'd never seen before.

MoonJumper unfurled a few strings from his hand, a look of pure malice towards the jester. In a blink of an eye, crimson red strings wrapped around every limb on Zephyr; Arms, Legs, Neck. Even his torsos to prevent him from twisting.

"It was about damn time I put an end to this," MoonJumper spoke. He was tired of Zephyr always trying to cause havoc. He doesn't need this anymore.

"M..Master..?" Zephyr squeaked out, and if it was just trick, Julia could have sworn she saw a.. tear.. coming from the jester as every piece of him fell apart with a snap. He was in so many pieces he couldn't pull himself together.

The jester was finally incapacitated.

"Julia!" Once MoonJumper turned away from the pile of limbs, he saw just how bad Julia had been beaten. "Julia, my sweet dear! I'm so sorry!" He rushed to gently hold her face. He inspected the damage, and immediately declared that she was going to need medical attention; How many health pons reside in the forest?

At that moment, as her father fretted over her, all she could say was:

"I'm sorry... I wasn't... strong enough.." the tears came again, she gripped into he sleeves. The pain in her eyes broke MoonJumper, his face twisted into remorse. He did this to her, he messed up this sweet innocent child. Even now she blames herself for not being able.

MoonJumper held onto her, "Don't say that.." he started to cry as well "do not apologize, I am the one who should.." he held on to her and didn't let go. He couldn't, he wouldn't, "I am sorry that this has happened, I'm sorry I wasn't able to keep you safe.." he kissed her forehead, the only thing left slightly untouched "you are more than enough, and I'll always love you."

Melody, Bonnie, and Snatcher had returned at the end of everything. The hatted child was carrying Julia's bat as they noticed the area. Piles of body parts, a halved Gabriele, MoonJumper holding onto a beaten Julia while both were crying.

"What the hell happened!?" Was all Snatcher could say.

* * *

Zephyr's remains were locked in a chest, magical chains strapped it down to prevent anyone or anything from opening it. As long as no one attempts to put him back together, he won't get back up.

Julia was hunched in on herself, head in her legs and wrapped around with a rather warm blanket curtesy of Melody. She was wrapped in Snatcher's chair as Bonnie and Melody stood on each side of the armrests and patted her head. Gabriele was leaning against a wall, patched back together, but he was still limp and unresponsive.

MoonJumper had checked what exactly Zephyr did to him, and it seemed he was in a state of shock with a little bit of illusion paralysis. In short, He's having a terrible dream. Nothing much they could do about it right now.

"Why weren't you with her!?" Moon shouted at his other half, an annoyed Snatcher glared back. "You said you'd be with Julia! I may not be the best father, but you let her go off alone!"

"Hey! I said I'd take her to Mafia Town, and I did!" He folded his arms "and in my defense, I got distracted." Was Snatcher's reply.

The two kept fighting, the yelling, it was too much for Julia. It was just like back then, the girl thought she had escaped the arguments, but it seems like she was always the start of them.

Bonnie and Melody had tilted down, thinking they heard Julia say something, and they did. You could hear faint, 'please, stop fighting.' And mumbles about being sorry. The two children looked at each other, worried. Melody knew Julia's story, so she tried to call the two off.

However, her voice was drowned out by the adult ghosts. Bonnie huffed and yelled out "Hey! Can you guys like, Stop?!" She had the two's attention and the room grew quiet. A soft chanting of 'sorry' over and over again could be heard from Julia now.

Kero and a couple of more minions came in at the time, rushing with all the heart pons they could find around the forest and the swamp. It was slow but effective. "Mama! Don't worry! You're gonna be okay!" Kero said, giving her a sad look. Julia slightly looked up at him, she held out her hand to hold his. She stayed like that for a while after finally retreating into the blanket again. Kero, with a determined look, huddled out of the tree with the other Minions in tow.

"Julia, I don't mean to upset you with our yelling.." MoonJumper cracked open a pon and held it to her, it was immediately absorbed. "We'll be quiet now.."

Julia had thought coming back here would have made her feel better, for while it did, but there will always be trouble. With a good side, there's always bad. She should know this. Life wasn't always perfect, you can't just expect situations like these to disappear.

"Hey.. uh... Kiddo.." Snatcher tried getting her attention, but Julia did even move "you know.. you can stake your claim somewhere and live here now.. if you want.." he scratched the back of his head. God, looking at her was depressing. He hated it. "Or I could pick a place if you want-.."

Still no word from the girl. Everyone was starting to worry, but Melody soon found out that it was just because Julia had fallen asleep. She had grown tired of crying and just nodded off.

"We should let her fully rest now.." MoonJumper said, looking at everyone "I'm honestly not too far behind... I wouldn't mind resting a bit."

"You were trapped in ice for four years, I'm not surprised.." Snatcher said back to him, "come on, kiddos. Let's let them rest."

Melody and Bonnie hopped off the chair, leaving MoonJumper to lift Julia and lay her on him in a hug. The two girls smiled as they walked off and out of the tree, probably back to the ship, or the little ghost village down the road.

For the first in forever, the rain had graced the Subcon forest. Moon looked out, remembering a time where Julia was scared of the lightning and thunder, how he stayed by her side till they both feel into slumber. MoonJumper never thought he'd get to sing to her again.

That soft melody without a name, always made her happy.

* * *

It was dark. Her dreamscape was always dark, but it started getting lighter with time. She didn't mind anymore. She just accepted the fact that this was her world. Julia hummed to herself as she wondered, but was stopped by a sudden wall.

The girl had run headfirst into an invisible wall, Julia figured this out after feeling around for a moment. Until her hand slid through an opening. The girl tilted her head in wonder, she had never seen this before...

Taking a step-through, the environment changed drastically. There were a night sky and a backdrop of burning buildings, Julia gasped as she watches in fear. A man was shouting, trying to figure out how to enter the surrounded area the was lit ablaze.

"Amalia!" He shouted, frantically trying to grab his courage to run through.

But he couldn't.

His voice was familiar, but his face was something Julia had never seen. However, with another look, she could confirm the clothing the man wore. It was Gabriele! The girl ran to him, a smile on her face.

"Gabriele!" Julia called out to him, making the man turn around. He had lightly tanned skin and black curly hair. His eyes were hazel and he sported a small chin goatee.

Was this.. what he looked like..?

"Who are you! What do you want?!" He panicked, looking at the girl dressed in a suit. It was odd seeing women wearing pants in this time frame.

"G..Gabriele it's me! Julia!" She was confused by the way Gabriele was asking, he knew her! Why was he saying this? She went to go grab his hand, but he slapped her away.

Julia was hurt by this, as Gabriele turned back around and attempt to go through the fire, but he pulled back "I have to get in there, Amalia is sick she needs my help!"

He thinks this is all real...

"Gabriele! None of this is really happening!" She tried to talk to him "it's just a dream!"

He didn't listen to her as the doctor jumped through finally. Julia walked in after him, she knew the fire wouldn't hurt her. When she entered, the scene changed and Gabriele was back to how Julia knew him as. The doctor was holding onto a beautiful brunette who looked sickly and weak. Her dress was singed and she held up a shaken hand to Gabriele's cheek.

"Amalia lets go, we can get out of here!" Julia could hear his voice cracking "and when we do, you'll get better.."

"Gabriele.. she’s not real.." Julia quietly said, putting a hand on his shoulder. He finally seemed to snap out of it, looking up at her then back down. The realization was finally coming back to him, but he desperately kept holding onto the girl in his arms. He kept holding her until she vanished from him, the fire subsided, and if the doctor could cry. He would be.

Julia knelt next to him, unsure of what to say. She wanted to try and hug him, but Gabriele stood up suddenly with clenched fists. Julia looked up concerned and confused.

The doctor was angry, but he wasn't sure what he was angry at. The only person that was around him was Julia and he just... aimed it at her "I was slowly starting to forget about all of this! I was fine running away from this very moment!" He pointed at Julia "at of all the people I've met during my travels.. why was it that you remind me so much of her!"

Deep down he knew he could never forget Amalia, that girl he loved, the one who he promised to marry and have a wonderful life with. He could never forget the torment the fires had caused, smelling rotted diseased flesh burning as he tried to help everyone he could. He never once even thought something would hit this hard as it did.

"I was doing fine before I met you!" He snapped, making Julia move back from the hurt.

The girl was too tired to cry anymore. But this.. hurt. Why did it hurt so much? Was it because he declared he was a friend, and suddenly took a one-eighty? Or was it something else?

Was it the fact every time he looks at Julia, Gabriel didn't see.. her? But another instead?

Julia held a face, her hurt was clearly showing as Gabriele finally grabbed ahold of what he just said.

"Wait.. no- Julia.." He tried to take back his tantrum, but Julia stepped back again.

"A long time ago, you told me to move on." Julia whispered, looking at him with a serious face "maybe.. maybe I'm not the one who needs to move." She turned away, "but since you asked, I'll gladly leave you be."

The girl vanished as Gabriele tried to run after her. Leaving him alone in his world. He messed up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we have it, drama, hurt, stuff that's going to need to be worked on with time. I'm taking a leap of faith when writing these kinds of situations and I hope I don't royally mess them up. I have good plots I swear! It's just how I attempt to execute it is the problem. Wish me some luck guys...


	13. Mail from the Mafia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a small filler chapter the will lead to the Arctic Cruise DLC! Enough with the drama, for now, It's time to attempt recovery! Sorry for not posting sooner on here, I had to go pick my mother up from the hospital, I'm super tired and drained. But I'm feeling okay now after a nap.

**(Chapter Thirteen: Mail from the Mafia)**

Two days have passed, two whole days since Zephyr came and attacked Gabriele and Julia. Two days since Julia had healed and spoken to the doctor. What he had said to her, hurt Julia very much, but the kids were making it hard for her to feel bad in front of them.

Melody had reunited with Lynn, and the two, plus Bonnie, Kero, and a few Subcon minions started following her around. They were 'house seeing' around the forest. While MoonJumper and Snatcher tried to think of a place to keep that locked chest that Zephyr's parts were in.

"Come on, Julia!" Lynn was pulling on her pant leg "you promised you'd give me a ride! Let's ride!" Pointing to her stationary motorbike. "It'll be a lot faster!"

"Sorry, kid." Julia softly smiled at her "I'm running low on fuel, and I'm not sure if I'll ever get more.." scratching the back of her head. Kero was holding onto her other hand and she looked ahead to see Bonnie and Melody playing tag along the way.

The little minions kept pointing out areas, broken buildings, anything that Julia could take. None look any good so far, it was either too much work to fix, or too inconvenient.

Bonnie was just a little ball of fire as she swatted away the large spiders that attempted to drop down on anyone. She's got more bravery then Melody, Julia wonders if she ever protected the hatted child in the past before?

The tall girl smiled at the two friends, it was cute how they matched in away. Both used umbrellas as a kind of weapon, and Bonnie could probably use the same hats as her too. Speaking of hats, she missed being able to use them, the hats were fun.

What did happen to the hats she was carrying? Maybe they were left behind like her umbrella.

"Mama! Mama!" Julia looked down at her son, he was pointing in a direction. The group seemed to have made their way back around to the swamp, there Kero pointed to a tree. In that tree, was a broken, roofless, treehouse with a campfire inside.

"Well, that's a fire hazard.." Julia mumbled, putting her hand to her chin.

"It's next to the swamp, mama!" Kero smiled with glee, still pulling on her sleeve "We could live next to the swamp! Can we!?"

Julia snickered at the child, he very much wanted to live next to the swamp.. probably reminds the boy of how he used to live. If it makes him happy, then she'll just have to deal with a major overhaul. Besides, living in a tree might be fun...

What about the necessary living equipment for her though? Electricity, Bathrooms, Warm water... Washing machine, Refrigerator. All that good stuff. Julia took her hat off and swept back her hair, thinking about these things made her want to go live in the nice sunny Mafia Town; but she'd much prefer the quietness of this forest.

The area was also not too far from Snatcher's place too. She could see his Mushroom tree over from where they stood. They could be neighbors. She scoffed at that thought.

"Fine, little buddy. But.." Julia trailed off, "It's a lot of work to build a house from nothing, especially in a tree.." she looked down at him, adding in "we're also currently broke..-"

Melody perked her head up at this "Well.. technically we still have our jobs as Movie stars!" She pointed out and also added "you can also stay on the ship for as long as you like! Or until you can get enough money!"

This was true! At some point, she'll need to drop by dead-bird studios. Julia still needs to say 'hey' to Grooves.

"Hey, Kiddos!" Snatcher popped out of the ground starling literally every child and Julia, beside Melody, and one minion. He laughed at their expressions "Hah! That never gets old. Anyways!" He held out a little bag full of folded letters, some stolen and one was actually for Julia.

"You got mail, pumpkin head!" He held it out to her as she swiped it away with an annoyed face.

* * *

Gabriele was still lingering around the forest, he couldn't bring himself to leave. Neither he nor Julia spoke about what happened in the dreamscape to anyone, probably for the best. Though, it still eats away at him. He's unable to bring himself to apologize to her in fear she might lash out.

Maybe this was it? Maybe this is where they part ways...

"I take my leave for a few days.." Gabriele shot his head up and turned it to the side "only to find my friend mopping behind a tree.." The badge seller waved, expression unidentifiable.

Of all the time to appear again, the Badge seller decided now. When everything was over. "Where have you been, if I may ask." Gabriele tried to hold the annoyance in his tone.

"Restocking." Was the twitching man's simple reply "if you hadn't noticed.. there are two children from space now."

"Yes.." Gabriele mumbled, "I did notice, and like the first one, she tried to knock my head off." He held his head thinking it was going to fall off any minute, taking a seat against the tree "except, the bow child fully intended to."

The badge seller chuckled "quite the rambunctious species.." there was then a moment of silence, neither spoke until the man in red and purple decided to bring up a topic Gabriele was trying to work on "and what of Julia? Why are you not with her?"

The doctor just groaned out in frustration, it seems so very complicated to him; Juggling emotions was something he thought he was done with. "I messed up." Was all he said.

"Oh?" The Badge seller looked down "what exactly did you do?"

"Zephyr attacked.. things got complicated I assumed.." Gabriele informed, watching his old friend stiffen up "I'm not entirely sure myself, because I was out cold and living a nightmare.. from a blade he used.." The plague doctor sighed once more, remembering the face Julia had made at him. "In short, Julia found my dreamscape.. she witnessed something I never planed would happen.. and I just.."

"You lost yourself, and threw your emotions at her." The man finished, humming "you cannot blame her for having similar traits as the woman you once knew.." he scratched his masked chin "it is not her fault for being that way."

"I know.." Gabriele held his head in shame

"Well, will you try and make up?" The Badge seller asked, wait for a response.

"I'm... working up the courage," the doctor looked up at the dark sky. It always seemed to be night here, it was odd "I'm too scared of what she might do, she is 'his' daughter now, after all.."

The badge seller hummed again, aimlessly tapping his cane against the tree "Maybe this will put your mind at ease.." he said grabbing his friend's attention "if I know Julia, and I am pretty sure I do.." he trailed for a moment "She's the kind of person who is always willing to give others a second chance. Most of her actions prove that." No matter what anyone has done, that what that girl has tried to do.

Gabriele just looked at him, he should have known this. He's pretty sure he knew this. What was his mystery friend getting at with this?

"You seem lost, let me say something else.." the badge seller clacked his cane down on the ground, leaning on it "I've gotten word from Mafia Town that the boss has sent a cruise invention to their only mafia girl.." he looked down at him, his only eye seemed to shine bright. "If you do not get up now, this guilt will be another thing eating away at you." Last time the badge seller checked, she was reading the message now.

The twitching man enjoy watching these two interact with each other, it could be quite comical at times, and he'd rather not see a falling out. When Gabriele still didn't attempt to get up, the Badge seller smacked him on the arm with his cane.

"Get up you fool!" He was starting to show a little more emotions towards him "you were so happy to find out she wasn't dead, you scouted her out in a futuristic world alone." He took one last look at the downed doctor before the man decided to walk away "Do not let your past destroy your future. Get up."

Then he just vanished behind a tree.

As harsh as that may have sounded, Gabriele slowly got up. Unsure still, but he started to find his way with every short step. Badge seller was right, this was Julia they were talking about.. if he could just attempt- prove that he means his apology.. maybe things will be okay again?

Though, Gabriele found himself stopping again. Thoughts of doubt clogging his head. This was still hard, he was nervous. The doctor remembered what happened with her soul.. what if she isn't the same as before..?

Gabriele sighed, "I'll never know if I don't find out.."

* * *

"Dear, Julia (last name here)" Julia readout, realizing she'd never given out her last name to anyone besides MoonJumper. She laughed at the fact they forgot to remove the wording bracketed from the letter. "You are invited to celebrate your return via cruise" Wonderful, she's invited to her own party. The children who gathered around her while she was reading were confused but also intrigued.

Julia silently read the rest to make sure she was reading it correctly. In the envelope, there were two tickets for guests and one for her. Snatcher was long gone but Moon had made an appearance now, box in hand and still looking for a good spot to put the chained box.

"Hey, dad!" Julia lightly shouted as she saw the ghost from the corner of her eye. "I just got invited to a cruise!" She wasn't sure how to react properly, this was going to be her first trip ever on one of those large boats. Those kids seemed excited, she might as well be.

"That's probably the same one Cc is going to be on!" Lynn said, pointing out "She invited me as her plus one."

Melody and Bonnie gave each other a knowing look. Before they had landed, they had to make sure were some of the locations were when they found faint traces of older timepieces on this planet. A few were definitely near an arctic location, Some seemed to be underground. Since Julia was invited on this 'cruise' they might as well tag along to see if there were timepieces!

However, they could always jump to and from the ship anytime, so needing a ticket was useless to them.

"I'm sorry, did you say.. a cruise?" Julia's father puts down the box for a moment to look at her, the child handed him the paper as she pocketed the tickets for later. "Well! What an odd surprise." He smiled, handing back the paper. "Will you be going?"

Julia scratched the back of her head, softly nodding. Maybe this was what she needed? Just to get away for a bit. Hopefully, she could relax and take a moment to breathe. "Do you know who you're going to take?" MoonJumper asked, looking at her. "I personally won't need a ticket; you know me." The puppeteer could go invisible, being detected was not a problem for him. Lynn was already invited, so that left Kero and...

Julia just... froze for a moment. Looking at the paper.

"Hey.. do you guys mind if I am along for a while?" Julia asked, looking at everyone. The looked at each other confused for a second but nodded. Before anyone could leave though, Julia added "Hey, buddy. You want to talk about the house idea with gramps here?" She smiled, pointing at Moon.

The man smiled at his grandson, "House idea? You found a spot?" Kero was going ballistic about how he wanted to live next to the swamp. MoonJumper laughed at the child heartily leading the kids away for a while.

Julia was now alone.

She hated being alone, but she needed to think for a moment without stressing about making the kids worry about her. Folding up the paper, she rubbed her face with her hand. She shortly found herself sitting in a broken wall, near the back of the treehouse she planned on taking as her home.

There was a small little shack behind the place and probably what she could see was an overturned picnic table. Or maybe that was just a log...

But that wasn't the most important thing she was seeing.

What was grabbing her attention was a.. was a moving bush. The nice green was out of proportion to Subcon's dead and purple, the things didn't blend in too well.

"Julia!" The girl turned her head for a moment and looked back to see the odd moving bush was gone, was she just... imagining it? The girl then fixed her sights on the doctor, who slowly made his stop just a few feet away from her. Probably five feet. The man was nervous, she'd never seen him like that before.

When she had first met this man, he was calm, collected, he knew what he was going to say and how he was going to say it. Now he just seemed to fiddle in place, thinking of his next thing to say besides her name.

Julia turned her gaze away once again. What happened two days ago still hurt her, but not as much as the initial shock. "What..?" She asked, waiting for him.

His shoulders shrunk down a bit, but the girl wasn't paying attention to that "I.." Gabriele tried to start a sentence, but it just died in his no longer exciting mouth. "I'm sorry!" He announced a little too loud while taking off his hat and making a small bow.

This caught Julia off guard, She wasn't expecting this at all. At least, not so animated.

Gabriele decided to get to the point and just say it "I'm sorry, Julia." He said again, not looking up at her until he finally got her attention "what happened back.. in the dreamscape.." he looked to his hat and fiddled with the rim "I.. didn't mean to say those things at you.."

Julia let him continue, she figured if she started talking it would be harder for him.

"What happened to me.. in the past.. you see.." Gabriele was starting to lose his train of thought, he started to fumble with his words "That woman was my.. fiancée.." it was hard losing your other half, it left several wounds on Gabriele's heart.

He was scared that if he attempted to move on, he'd forget why he kept going all this time. That anger towards MoonJumper. What that demon had done to him. But now? He was face to face with that demon's daughter.

And she was no demon.

"I was under a lot of stress, we all were.. and I.." Gabriele tried to finish off his message which he felt wasn't going anywhere "I had gotten word that.. you were invited to a cruise. I'm not honestly sure what a cruise is.." he trailed off again but sighed.

"If you'd allow me to accompany you, I can try to make things up to you personally!" He suggested, looking at her hopefully. The thought of being left alone with his mind bothers him, the badge seller was right.. he wouldn't last a moment alone with his guilt.

Julia wasn't quick to talk, she folded her leg over the other, and leaned back the best she could on top of the wall. Thinking to herself, Gabriele tried taking his mind off things by playing with his hat again.

Julia sighed, looking at him. Gabriele was trying. He was. The doctor had all rights to be mad if MoonJumper had caused all that pain she had seen, no wonder why he would carry that much hate with him.

She didn't mind taking the brunt of the anger if it meant keeping Moon safe, but it was something else that was gutting her. Julia, for the life of her, couldn't understand what it was. Every time she looked at him, she felt this.. pain and for now, she just wants it to go away.

Julia suddenly jumped off the wall, grabbing Gabriele's attention. Grabbing one of the tickets out of her pocket, she held it out to him. The doctor looked confused until he read what was written on it. She was inviting him!

"Look.." Julia spoke for the first time in a while to him "I'm still trying to sort things out in my head." She looked away from him, giving more thought on her words "You know I'm sorry for what my dad did to you.. and I'm sorry you had to go through all of that.. losing the one you love leaves a bad mark" the girl wouldn't know anything about romantic love, be she knew the loss of losing someone you cared for all too well.

Gabriele carefully took the ticket from her as he placed his hat back on. He watched her talk, that hurt expression still on her face. Julia kept talking "but.. until the time arrives for the cruise.. give me some space.." The plague doctor deflated a bit, hoping that maybe he could spend a little time with her.

Though, at least he was allowed to come with her on this cruise.

He watched the girl walk away, but he had to call out "I promise you, I will make this up to you, Julia!" The girl just waved without looking back.

Gabriele sighed, he was happy to know that Julia wouldn't attack him, but he still felt something off about her.


	14. Rough Patch Cove

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I thought I'd write one more filler chapter before the Arctic Cruise DLC, I wanted to do an introduction to a few of my other adorable AHiT characters. I haven't gotten the time to sit down and play through the first DLC again, so It's going to take me some time to write the next chapter.

**(Chapter Fourteen: Rough patch Cove)**

It was peaceful, quiet, the sound of rushing water echoing off the cavern that had given their kind shelter for generations. Moonlight shone through small cracks in the ceiling, and an occasional large spider that the defense team has to fend off to prevent any of their kind from being taken as a snack.

A pink bush like being with a small flower on a branch sticking out of its foliage sat and watched over the cove as a vast majority of its kind slept. It was different than most of the residents that reside in the caverns, but none judge its appearance because this pink ball of leaves was one of the mightiest protectors of the cove.

His eyes softly glowed a pale pink, and one eye was scarred from a battle long ago. Its skin underneath the leaves was a ghostly pink as well, and fangs sharper than most.

Out of all the different tails the residents have, Small, large, some more bulb-like and others thin; some have Spikes for battle and others do not. The pink warrior's tail was spiked, two small ones and a large third, however, it was broken.

He huffed and looked around once more, slowly it started to patrol. It seemed to quiet as the bush walked. Only then did he realize it's younger charge was nowhere near him. The small pure breed couldn't stay away while the pink warrior worked. The bush being was on alert now, frantically looking around and calling out with a quiet call.

Someone answered his call, but it wasn't his charge. A small, fast, red bush came running at the pink, shivering in place out of its extensive energy and the need to run.

This one was strange as well, its skin underneath the maroon red leaves looked like the color of mud, with glowing green eyes. Its tail has no spikes for it was only a scout of the cove. The young male twitched in place, meowing in a questioning manner.

The bigger pink bush huffed again, and soft agitated growl came from its throat. The red bush's ears perked up in hearing that one of the pure breeds have gone missing, and took it upon themselves to go searching. Just another reason to run around.

The red bush took off with silence, as the pink one watched, then soon joined the search.

* * *

Kero hid behind a tree, the child was goofing around as he and Julia were playing a game of hide-and-seek. It started as a one time game because Julia was trying to get things ready for the trip. Melody was welcoming them onto her ship to sleep so that they won't have to bunk in Snatcher tree anymore.

Tomorrow would be the day they arrive at the docks, so making sure they have everything was necessary. Though eventually, Julia started to have a little to much fun and eventually forgot trying to get ready. She couldn't remember the last time she played hide and seek, and if she did, it was a repressed memory.

Julia taunted out in a silly manner. "Kero! Were are you~?" She could hear his giggles from somewhere to her left, making her smile. She walked off in that direction, and when Julia thought she had him. "Hah!"

He wasn't there.

"Mm." She hummed, hearing him laugh out from somewhere. "I thought I had you."

She searched around the next couple of trees, however, she stopped when she heard footsteps on the ground. They sounded light, a little too light to be Kero's. Taking a quick look, but carefully as to not alert what was moseying about. Once she had a full view, Julia was shocked to see that little moving bush from before.

The little bush creature sniffed the air, its tongue hanging out of its mouth and it snorted. The bush immediately turned to look at Julia catching her off guard. It sat down, still looking at her, with its spiked tail hitting the ground.

"Uhh.." Julia couldn't take her eyes away as she called out quietly "Kero..? There's something strange... looking at me."

Kero came around a different tree, opposite from where Julia was looking at. When the small boy saw what his mother was looking at, he immediately gasped and got down on the ground. Seeing this action from the child, Julia followed. The two were now on the ground watching the odd bush.

"What..?! What is it?!" Julia asked quietly, taking a look at Kero

"It's a rough patch!" The child whispered in wonder, "I haven't seen a rough patch since Vanessa frosted the forest!" He smiled as the boy looked to his mother, then back to the animal. It was now copying them, laying down on the ground. "They used to be everywhere! A lot of people had them as pets!"

"So.. are they safe?" Julia asked, looking at the bush.

"Well.. it varies, some are very nice while others.. not so much." Kero now sat up and looked at the rough patch, he tilted his head "but the rough patches I knew were way bigger than this one."

Julia studied the little being that was now called a rough patch, Its foliage seemed to be that of a blueberry bush. A large leaf on its head that looked side-swept, and two berried on the side of its head that looked like a hair ornament. Two sharp leaf ears twitch as it's seemingly glowing blue eyes watched the boy. Its skin was a dark color, but Julia couldn't tell if it was a deep blue or pure black.

"This little one seems to be some sort of.. pygmy." Kero thought out loud, but it made Julia wondered.

"How big are they normally?" She asked

Kero looked at her, "about my hight." He was no taller than Melody and Bonnie.

Hearing that, Julia almost choked on herself.

* * *

The pink rough patch sniffed around, feeling a slight breeze made the male turn it's head up. Confused, he walked on to find a slit of space that was unfamiliar to him. A few days ago, there was only cold, dark, and damp... but now there was light and an endless field beyond.

Sniffing again, the pink rough patch froze up. The pure breed was out there. Alone. The male growled, the young one could get attacked, eaten, or something possibly worse! Having a little trouble, the pink rough patch managed to squeeze through and was hit with a large amount of fresh air.

Shortly after, the red rough patch made himself known, bumping into the bigger pink make. Shaking his head from the sudden impact, the scout opened their eyes to witness the largest place he had ever seen! With a smile on the red rough patch's face, tail moving back and forth, he took off.

The pink male quietly called out in annoyance to the younger red male, in a way of saying 'get back here' but the red was having to much fun running around a few trees.

* * *

Julia thought it'd be best to move away and leave the wild animal be. She had things she needed to do now that Kero was satisfied with spending time with his mother, however, as the two walked back to Snatcher's tree to pick out a few articles of clothing.. so was the small rough patch.

Julia stopped, as did the bush. when the girl turned around, so did it as well. Kero laughed at the small thing, it seemed to be mimicking his mother. "Mama, can we keep it!?" He pointed out, a smile in his voice, as Julia kept her eyes on the animal.

It was incredibly cute, Julia will not lie about that, though she was unsure is it had some type of bush rabies- or some kind of plant sickness. Or maybe.. the rough patch was troubled and it just wanted some company. I couldn't be the last of it's kind because Julia had seen a way bigger one in the twilight bell. Vaguely another outside Vanessa manor next to a large figure.

So surely it wasn't lonely.

The small rough patch waddled up to the tall girl, making a soft snort with its mouth, then proceeded to pap her leg. It stayed like that for a while as it looked up. Julia was confused, but at that moment, she was agreeing with Kero.

Just as she was about to pick up the small creature, something come running past her in a blur, making the girl lookup. Only to have something thwack her on the head. The thing that hit her pushed off her head as she backpedaled, landing with a raised tail and frilled up leaves.

Julia was being hissed at by a slightly bigger pink rough patch, however, it was still small. A small red one comes running around them like a perimeter. Preventing the two bipedal people from leaving.

"Where did these two come from?" Julia mumbled to herself, looking at how the pink one was standing in front of the smaller one protectively. "Wait- do you think we're trying to hurt that one?" She asked, unsure if the creatures understood them.

The pink rough patch stopped hissing, but it was still in a predator stance, tail raised. It growled at her as if trying to talk back. It noticed the smaller bipedal get closer to the larger one, it was scared.

Julia wasn't about to let a wild animal thrash her child. If anyone takes hits, it'll be her. "Look, buddy! That little started following us! We did nothing, and we won't do anything."

It hissed back, it didn't seem to appreciate that Julia called his younger charge a 'thing'. Though, that small green rough patch just hobbled up to the pink one, and did the same thing to Julia; It papped the side of the pink one's face, an adorable grunt left the green one's throat.

It seemed to calm down, almost looked like it sighed like it was just tired of this small one not taking situations seriously. In the end, it too placed a paw on the small green rough patch's face.

The red one comes barreling towards the two, crashing into the group and knocking them over. The pink one hissed and starting swatting at the red rough patch's face. It didn't seem to mind, it just continued to shake violently with a smile.

"So.. I guess the rough patches are making a return.." Kero spoke quietly, looking at the odd group of three. "That's nice! The forest will be slightly more alive now!" He smiled, looking up. Julia just smiled back.

As the small group of rough patches was about to break apart, a large spider comes speeding down the tree, about to snag the smallest of the group when Julia comes running in and sending it flying with her bat.

When she smacked it, it went hurling at the farthest tree, popping away like all enemies seem to do here. The pink one looked up, almost shaken at how fast this bipedal's reflex was. That shiny stick it held almost looked like the branch in its leaves, maybe this one was a protector as well?

The older rough patch of the group meowed a soft thanks, it's younger charge was about to walk towards the two bipedal beings again when it grabbed the pure breed by the scruff of its neck. The pure breed whimpered, slowly waving all of its paws at the taller being.

The warrior softly growled, as of to say 'we're going home' without another word. The red one ran ahead, never taking a break for a moment.

With an opening in the cove's walls, the pink one would have to keep an extra eye on it. Not only that but also his charge. How was he going to explain this to the elders?

* * *

Julia and Kero watched the bush creatures wander off, only to assume that they were returning from where they came. It was one of the less violent encounters she has had, and she was frankly glad about it.

"You think they'll be back?" Kero asked, holding Julia's hand as they walked off as well.

"Probably, little buddy, probably.." Julia said, trailing off with her thoughts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love my rough patch children, It was about time I added them to this story.


	15. Aboard the Cruise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter, I'll try my best for the next one, which will have a lot more happening. I'm just feeling a little out of it right now.

**(Chapter Fifteen: Aboard the Cruise)**

Melody and Bonnie made early preparations before everyone was to head back down to the plant, right to the marina. Like the captain of the spaceship thought, there were a few Timepiece left behind, far older than the ones she had lost. Leaving the machine room, the two girls had seen Gabriele, who had requested to come along for a faster arrival, walked into the kitchen with Cooking Cat. This seemed a little odd because she was supposed to be with Lynn, but Melody shrugged it off.

It was about time to wake up her sister who was back in her usual spot in the mound of pillows in her room, the only difference was that Kero held onto Julia while the two slept. Sometimes, the stuffed child reminded her of a teddy bear that fought away nightmares. It was a nice thought since she remembered Julia having those terrors thanks to that crazy lunatic.

Melody was glad to hear he wasn't going to bother anyone anymore.

When they were in the captain's room, Bonnie made her way to try and wake up the older girl, but Melody stopped her midway.

"Hold on, you see.." The hatted child held her hand out, then picking up a pillow "we have our ways of waking each other up." Melody smiled mischievously, making Bonnie blink a couple of times, but then smiled.

The two children armed themselves with a few kinds of cotton stuffed headrests, however, right as they were about to make a move, Kero jumped up and threw a pillow at Bonnie. His original aim was at Melody, but he missed his mark. "Uh- oops." Kero laughed, as he dodged a throw from the Captain.

The commotion woke up Julia as she received a face slap from a pillow anyways while she was trying to wake up fully.

"Well, if I wasn't awake before... I am now." Julia muttered while placing a hand to her face. Taking a moment to look at the children tossing stuff at each other, Julia then decided to toss a pillow at Melody.

Shortly after, Julia was walking out of the bedroom with all three kids grappling onto her. Melody and Bonnie on her legs and Kero stuck to her back. It was hard, but she trudged on. Everyone was having a blast. Once she had reached the main hub, everyone was greeted by Gabriele as he watched Cc leave.

"Ah, I see the children have woken you up," Gabriele said, his hands placed behind his back in his normal stance. "I've.. taken deliberately of learning how to use this kitchen.."

"You can cook?" Julia asked, raising a brow, Melody giggled at her. She remembered the first time she asked Julia that and she brunt her first dish on her ship. Julia glared at the small girl, realizing what she was laughing at.

"I did, a long time ago.." he stated, scratching his head "much use it does me now though, however.." he held his hands out, "I'm now in the presence of people who can eat for once.."

Melody and Bonnie were slightly excited to see what this guy had made, charging to the kitchen just to get first dibs if the food was good. Though, nothing compares to Cc's cooking.

"Gabriele weren't you scared of using or being near fire..?" Julia asked, climbing up the ladder while Kero was still on her. "You could have gotten burned.." she whispered.

"Fret not, Julia. This is only part one of my apologies!" He oddly reassured her.

"Oh, so you think bribing me with food will win me over?" Julia did her best to hold a straight face, Gabriele was frantic trying to say something, "Just messing with you," she smiled softly, Julia could see small burn patches on Gabriele's hands where he might have lost himself. "Thanks, by the way.."

"You're... Welcome.." He was at a loss as he watched her move behind the doors. He sighed to himself as he soon followed.

Surprisingly, the food Gabriele had made was rather nice looking pancakes. Julia was slightly shocked to find that little Macaroons were leaning against a stack of three pancakes each topped with berries, mostly blueberries and raspberries and a dash of powdered sugar on top.

"I'm sorry, what-?" Julia was the one who was at a loss for words. The two smaller girls just cheered with glee.

Gabriele was happy he was able to get such a reaction. Though, he was glad for the chef cat's assisting him.

* * *

Julia stood at the ready, small bag next to her. Her appearance had changed for this little getaway, she remembered how some of her clothing had changed when she arrived back to this dimension, some being warmer clothing for a certain arctic area she was about to jump headfirst into.

She had removed her normal suit getup and was now wearing a green turtleneck with grey and black stripes, and a black long cardigan that was currently unbuttoned. It had three big white buttons that looked more for the style than actual use, however. Her pants were white and were rather fuzzy on the inside, which should keep her warm on the trip.

One last thing, Julia had thought of leaving her hat behind, just in case something were to blow it away. She wouldn't want to fuss over her cherished hat being lost forever. She was on vacation now!

The two children were just bouncing off the wall, not just from the breakfast they had, but from the excitement about being on a boat. They were ready to explore another new area that the cruise would hold and wondered what it would be like.

Kero contently held Julia's other hand as Gabriele finally met up with the others. "Everyone ready?" Julia asked as Melody headed over to the taller girl, giving her umbrella to her.

Just like before, now that Julia doesn't have an umbrella anymore, the child grabbed onto her back. The taller girl will be carrying the Melody and Kero while Gabriele was going to carry Bonnie.

"So wait-" Gabriele stared back to the planet "We just.. jump..? Seem rather dangerous.." he looked to the second group how were just about to head out the window, looking back at him "Right.. but you lot have done this so many times before." He sighed.

"Just hold on tight to that umbrella, you'll be fine!" Melody waved, just as Julia jumped out with her group.

Bonnie patted one of Gabriele's shoulders, in a way of say ' let's go!' And he looked back at her. Slightly nodded to himself, he soon made his way out the window as well. "This is like a strange dream," he muttered to himself "but then again, this was better than when I normally see.."

* * *

There they were! All five of them lined up and staring at the large ship before them. Melody and Bonnie took action and ran off without the two adults and Kero. Nice music played, everyone who was about to come aboard was lined up near the grass.

Julia could see a few Owls, Crows, and Penguins, hell, even the Conductor was here! The girl was slightly intimidated by the sudden environment, all she could think was 'what can go wrong?'. Now that she thought about it, something has always gone wrong.

Gabriele turned his head to look at Julia, noticing her unease. "Come now, Julia.." he held his hand out to her, she hesitated, just looking at it for a moment before taking it. "You deserve this break, don't overthink too much now."

Julia sighed, looking at him "yeah... I guess you're right.." she was still unsure, but stepping away from the large door they came through was a start.

As they walked down the path, a few passersby waved at her, mostly the few birds that worked with Grooves and the Conductor. Maybe one tourist that remembered her from a movie too.

"Ey! Lassie!" Her favorite director shouted out once he saw her walk near him "Come say hello to me wee lil ones!"

The tall girl broke away from Gabriele and Kero as she turned to the side, immediately getting jumped by a few tiny little yellow.. things..? Babies!? They chirped and pulled on her hair and clung onto herself as Julia was knocked down.

"Nae, yer weren't supposed ta jump her children!" The Conductor carefully plucked the little children off of the taller girl "I know yer excited ta meet her, but there are other ways to greet people!"

Julia laughed, plucking a child off her head and holding them. This one seemed to be wearing a small conductor hat, but all of them were so cute!

"It's nice ta know yer comin along, lass." The Conductor smiled "but, anyway... I'd better go ask about the childcare onboard." He scratched his chin, chuckling to himself as he watched the children hobble around Julia "I love these little blighters, but I cannae bring them to the bar with me, can I?"

Julia sighed at that, of course, there was a bar on board. The Conductor noticed her worries, and tried to reassure her "I've been doin a lot better lass, still tryin, but better."

Julia softly smiled at that, then she turned her head to the main front, where Melody and Bonnie were saluting a large... Walrus..? A large Walrus captain, stood next to two small little seals that softly bounced in place. Above them read a welcome sign, but the girl couldn't read what was written under the welcome.

It was drawn out in paint and crayons.

"Sweet mother of mercy.." she held a hand to her chest, approaching the two girls the captain of the cruise ship looked at her.

"Ma'am, these pups belong to you?" He sighed. Saying this man was tired was an understatement. He just looked done with everything.

"Uh, yeah- sorry." Julia looked back, scratching her head "My little sister and her friend didn't cause any destruction, did they?" The two girls looked up at her, insulted that Julia thought they'd destroy anything this soon.

They did plan on breaking a few.. things...

The captain of the cruise then spoke into his radio, "Are we ready to sail?" He asked, but only crashes and noise could be heard, making the older Walrus sigh once again. "Just... Just head on up." He pointed ahead.

The two little seals called out to the group as they walked "Wewcome to the cwuise!" And then "We howp you have a gweat twime!"

Julia felt like she was going to die from their adorable speech.

Melody and Bonnie once again shot off, wanting to explore just a little bit more before heading up the ramp. Julia noticed them run ahead and behind a smaller parked boat with large boxes in front of it. One of those boxes looked rather.. sketchy.

"Julia!" The three stopped at the ramp, Kero looked up and waved at the Jar placed on top of a large suitcase. "It is good to see that you've made it!" The boss of the Mafia of Cooks announced, a goon standing next to the case he was placed on "and I see children from space are running amuck..."

"Yeah.. you know Melody.." Julia softly chuckled

"Indeed," He mumbled out "Might need to keep an eye out for them."

With that in mind, Julia and Gabriele alongside Kero wandered off to go see exactly were the two children ran off too. She motions Gabriele to keep going with Kero while Julia couldn't help but look at the large box that radiated dark energy.

As she had gotten close, the box started to talk, but before the box got past clearing its throat, Julia cut them off with a single question:

"Snatcher..? Why are you in a box?" She asked, making the box groan.

"It's just you, Pumpkinhead.." he muttered, but Julia could still hear him "Look, I can't turn invisible like Moon boy, okay!?" He sighed, almost sounding like he was deflating "I deserve a vacation as much as anyone else. You don't rat me out, and won't bother you, deal?"

Julia shrugged "Fair enough, but I can't speak for Melody and Bonnie, however.." she heard him groan again.

"Don't tell 'em I'm here." He asked

"You got it." She pats the box, "by the way, where is my dad?" She asked, waiting for an answer.

"Probably already on the ship." He said, "Now leave before some catches you talking to a box, Kiddo!"

* * *

Who would have thought? A few minutes in and Melody and Bonnie already found a time rift, retrieved the timepiece, and Bonnie was already headed back to the ship.

Melody was left with the group to get situated on the _SS. Literally Can't Sink_. That was one heck of a name, as Julia was lost in thought from it. They went up the broken ramp, Melody has a fun time jumping from platform to the next while Julia just made bridges for her and the other two.

It was just easier to do so. You could say it was lazy, but Julia was done with the whole platform jumping gig. Hell, she was even done with Timepiece; sure if Melody needed help, Julia will help out, but like she kept thinking.. she was on vacation.

The final stretch of the red ramp brought them all aboard the ship. Bonnie soon after rejoined the group, only to have then brake off again.

Sometimes it felt a little lonely watching the girls run off, but Julia was just glad her sister had someone to keep up with her. She had her problems now.

Over the main speakers, she and Gabriele could hear the captain of this ship announcing that all passengers should go check-in at the front desk and that he'll be on board shortly.

"Right then, shall we?" Gabriele held his arm out to Julia, Kero was starting to get excited to get moving.

Julia, still unsure of the situation, looped her arm into his, while the group was being led inside by signs.

"I guess so." She said, before going quiet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're finally onboard the cruise, a few idle chit-chatting between characters and our main girl Julia. Gabriele doing his best to make things up to Julia and Melody and Bonnie are up to their normal shenanigans.


	16. Shard Hunt

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I fear I may not be able to make this arc longer, It will probably end in a few more chapters after this one, but I'm still working on them! This chapter seemed choppy to me with how I wrote it, but at least I had gotten some good information here.

**(Chapter Sixteen: Shard Hunt)**

Saying 'Get to the front desk was a lot harder to do then say, apparently something had happened to be there was a detour needed. Melody and Bonnie found no trouble jumping from balcony to balcony, but Gabriele, Julia, and Kero all looked over. Did these little guys expect them to just... jump?

Julia had already used her barriers to get onto the ship, does she need them inside too? Julia was lost in thought, while Kero kept looking over the rail. In his eyes, this place was marvelous! It was so nice seeing a new place that wasn't on fire! The child was all giddy and excited, he tugged on Julia's sleeve.

"Mama, we could slide down! Can we!?" Kero asked, looking up at her.

The girl was just thinking exactly on how they would get down, sliding was an option, but it could be to steep. She still felt slightly dizzy when faces with heights, but she was focused on something like she's been doing, perhaps Julia could try..?

Julia smiled at Kero, patting his head. He was just so happy to get out of the forest, and see new things; It made her feel happy too.

"Alright, alright.. hang on buddy." When Kero let go, Julia looked over the ledge again, judging on what she might have to do to not slide I to the large waterfall that was onboard. The girl felt her vision waning after a moment, but stepped back with an idea. "I think I have something.." she mumbled.

She remembered a time where she and her grandfather went to a fair during one of her birthdays, images of that long slope slide with the bags. She always loved going down those any chance she got. Though, that brought up another question.. could she?

If she could break her barrier, the perhaps bending it to look like a wobbly foil shouldn't be that hard, Julia could already make a spiral... she looked down once again to get ready.

Within the moment, a large diagonal ramp with uneven bumps appeared before them, Julia winced at how bad it looked. So much for safe and fun looking. The child didn't seem to mind however, Kero hopped in place ready to go. Julia could help but chuckle at this.

"Julia.. are you sure that is a good idea?" Gabriele asked, looking at the slide.

Julia climbed on, unsure of herself as well, "Well, the fairs back home always had slides like these, granted, they were a lot more.. even... then this."

"Let's go!" Kero unexpectedly pushed off, making his mother slip down an odd way. The two quickly descended, Gabriele quickly sliding down after them in worried that Julia could get hurt. Near the end, the tall girl rolled off the slope and onto a bush. She could hear Kero laughing as she world spun around, though she was fine and so was the flowers she landed on.

"Julia!" She heard Gabriele call out, she slowly popped out of the bush.

"I'm good!" She called back.

* * *

The large boat rumbled, an announcement that the ship was leaving the marina was progress. With a side comment from the captain says, _'Please try not to fall off'_ means that in the past, a few 'crew' members have fallen off. The group had found themselves in the main lobby of the cruise ship, were they saw loads of luggage just piled up.

"This is.. an unnecessarily amount luggage.." Julia whispered, walking to the front desk. She was glad she had a small bag to carry around.

"Hey, you guys!" The three turned their heads to a large stack of rectangular cases, on that stack was Lynn! "You sure did take your time!"

Kero broke away from the group, letting his mother deal with whatever she needed to do. He looked up at Lynn and waved. The girl hopped down, fist-bumping his shoulder. The two giggled at each other. "I saw Melody and Bonnie running around like crazy, I thought they'd stay with Julia to be honest.." she took a glance at the woman, ho was trying to keep herself in check around the seal staff.

"What's the deal with that anyway?" Lynn asked, looking back at Kero "I thought they went everywhere together."

"To be honest.." Kero slowly spoke up "I think their goals are different here.." he mentally pointed out "My Mama is on vacation while Auntie Melody is hunting for Timepiece.."

"Whoa, wait- there are Timepieces on this boat!?" Lynn was shocked, a little nervous to hear about this. She needs to stay away from those things now.

"I don't think there's that many, but yeah.." kero looked at her, head tilting.

"Hey, guys!" Melody ran up to the two, a smile on her face, shortly after Bonnie appeared. "We just explored this entire ship! Did you know there a huge octopus powering this boat!?"

"What!?" The two exclaimed, looking at the girl, which made the two space children laugh.

Once the commotion died down, Julia approached the group, a grim face as she looked at Melody. "Hey, uh... Melody.. you're not gonna like what I just found out.." the taller girl scratched the back of her neck. The smaller girl looked at her with a confused look un till she pointed to a massive pile of glass.

"They uh... broke a... Timepiece." Melody heard as she held her mouth open slowly walking to the broke mass. "They also lost.. a few shards I think?"

Melody was unsure of what to think, the fact that this thing stayed broken was creating so many questions, and the fact that the seals were unaffected by the broken Timepiece was another thing. "The damage is serious.." Melody mumbled out, but turned around "I think we can piece it back together though, Time hadn't been altered.."

"So.. we split up and look for broken glass..?" Bonnie spoke up, every child and two adults looked at Melody.

"Shiny piece of glass.." Melody pointed out, "Timepiece energy is always glowing, even in pieces.." she picked up the pieces, and stashed them away carefully.

Julia cracked her neck, "Right, okay... I'll go put my things in the room I was given, then I'll see what I can do." She spoke up, looking at Melody who smiled, might as well have more people searching.

"Yeah! Team Time back in action!" The hatted child cheered, getting a head start to find the first piece.

"Hey! Captain! Wait up!" Bonnie yelled running after her.

"Let's show them we can help too!" Lynn said, looking at Kero. Surly a small piece won't affect her. "Team..! Uh.. what should our team be named..?" The two walked off, excited to help Melody out for once.

"And then there were two," Gabriele spoke up, turning his head Julia while he folded his arms. The girl scoffed, however, not at him.

"Technically three, Moon had been following us for while now." She spoke up, pointing to the back of her. The two heard soft laughter.

"I could never truly hide from you could I?" They heard, but couldn't see. Gabriele kept turning around to try and pinpoint his location.

"Thirteen years, dad, Thirteen years.." Julia chuckled. "That, and my locket is pointed at you." The two noticed the silver locked slightly floating over her shoulder. "I was going to track you down later, but it seems I don't have to know." She smiled.

* * *

The second floor, third room to the left, Julia had opened the door to find a nice place; too bad it only had one bed, and no bathroom. The walls were a nice shade of soft blue, with wavy lines, however, and more than enough shelving. The celling reminded Julia of her middle school days, however. She didn't even realize people still use that kind of set.

The carpet was a dark blue, and the bedsheets were nice and soft when the older girl threw herself on top of it. Placing her bag down she headed out to the balcony. Like every other place she had been to, this place was also strange. Though, at least the garden was beautiful...

Maybe she should start a garden when they went back to Subcon..?

"Pardon me, Julia.." Gabriele knocked at the door, when he heard her call him in, the doctor stood next to her on the balcony. "Do all _'Cruise ships'_ look like this..?"

"Not sure, though commercials made them look better.." Julia muttered. She then squinted her eyes, looking over to the other side of the balconies, she could see a faint glowing.

"Isn't that.. a timepiece shard..?" Gabriele pointed out, having a hard time looking at the gleaming light. "That is an eyesore.." he mumbled.

"I'm gonna go get it-" Julia stated, leaving Gabriele to watch her make a rather large bridge with her barriers. This place was more work then it was worth. What was it worth anyways..?

"I shall dwell in this room while you're away, Julia" MoonJumper spoke, already relaxing on the bed. The girl just waved back.

Gabriele had turned around to see that MoonJumper was laying down. The creases and the crater was proof of that. The doctor had decided that he'd rather not stay in the same as the puppeteer, and left through the door.

There were more pieces to find, and he's sure Julia wouldn't mind him parting for a while...

Meanwhile, Julia had grabbed her first shard and was about to start heading in another direction. The cold air already getting to her, making her think, just once, that she could be in a warm place. Taking a stroll she waved hello to a nomad and shortly found her way into a casino.

"There was a casino here..?" Julia looked up in awe, sure it was small, but the noises were still loud.

"What do you mean we can't operate this thing without chips!?" A sudden cry was heard over the noises and the laughing of crows over at one of the roulette tables. Two children stood on a chair trying to operate a machine that they weren't old enough to use. "We have to get that shard out! Don't you see the glow?!"

Those children were her child Kero and Lynn, who was getting fed up at a slot machine. Julis strolled over to the mechanical contraption and just... punched the side of it. Sure it hurt her hand, but it made her feel slightly better.

That and the machine shook enough to where the shard fell out.

The two children looked up surprised, but also grateful. Then two looked up at her, "So! We've already collected a few- how many did you find?" Lynn spoke up.

"A total of one," Julia answered

"We collected two!" Kero spoke, holding two fingers up.

"That's three among us three.." Lynn counted looking for another area to head too "Melody and Bonnie probably have a few more, but we're not exactly sure..."

"Well just have to keep looking around then.." Julia looked at them.

The children nodded, deciding to follow Julia for a while, the casino was starting to get a little too loud.

* * *

Melody and Bonnie wandered around again, going back into rooms they had already been to and went over them carefully. The kitchen was a mess, and the dining place was havoc with sliding tables. One shard was in the kitchen on top of a secured pastry cart, the two may or may not have taken some sweets with them.

Though, the hatted girl thought to herself, If Julia ever saw this kitchen, she'd be having a fit right about now. It was way messier than the one on the child's ship.

It was also not good to find that a Mafia man had attempted to consume a shard without knowing; that's terrible kitchen safety! Then again, the staff were a bunch of little seals.. they must have it tough.

Or their to innocent to realize what their doing is not good.

This place needs more help than she originally thought...

"Hey, Melody!" Bonnie called out, "there's a washing machine room under the kitchen!" She pointed out, heading under, only to find Gabriele retrieving a shard from one of the machines.

"Oh! You found one!" Melody smiled, immediately stopping Bonnie from trying to attack the doctor, he, of course, noticed that and tried to brace for impact. Though he relaxed when nothing happened, the girls giggled at him.

He coughed "ah.. yes.." he handed the shard piece to them "This ship is rather large, and I've only managed to find one.." he started walking away with them, looking for another place to look.

The children spotted a vent that leads to the engine room with the large octopus, but Melody wanted some answers from this man standing before her.

"Gabriele, right?" Melody asked when he nodded, the girl continued "What's going one between you and Julia; I'm not entirely sure what happened, but she's not so happy now.." Melody folded her arms "especially when she's next to you."

The doctor froze at that observation, the child was a lot more.. perceptive then he thought. "I.. we..-" He was unsure of what to say, but he finally said something "Let's just say.. we had an argument.. though, don't think I haven't noticed how you've been avoiding her."

Melody was caught, she didn't think anyone had noticed that she was purposely avoiding Julia...

"May I ask as to why?" He enquired.

Melody fumbled with her hands but looked at Bonnie as to not speak on her behalf. "Yeah.. about that.." she looked up at Gabriele, signing "Julia had always been a good help, from the day we first met.." she took off her hat and looked at it "but she's always getting hurt, and I felt like it was my fault.."

"She's been burned, shot at with explosives, stabbed, almost drowned, and that one time she got infected by that odd flower.." Melody listed off, counting the stripes in her new hat with a flower on it "she'd always taken a hit on almost every mission we went on.."

"You don't want her involved with Timepiece anymore.." Gabriele pieced together

Man, he knew Julia was accident prone, but hearing all that had happened to her was quite a feat that she was still standing.. sure he had helped with the alpine part.. but he never heard of a few others.

"But even then, she was still getting hurt!" Melody exclaimed, looking at him "you should have seen what Zephyr did to her while you were out!" Just thinking about how messed up her sister's face was made her want to punch someone!

Gabriele was unaware of what happened between the two and was immediately worried.

"What I'm trying to say is.. I want her to relax for once... I want her to be happy.." she mumbled, looking down.

"As do I, Melody... As do I.." he patted the child's head.

* * *

Running around and meeting old and new people. Julia was having a riot laughing at the octopus's bad puns, who was named King. Though her group, mostly Lynn, just wanted to leave. Immediately. The octopus was a nice dude, though. They also helped a seal as well, who was hurt- Julia nearly had another heart attack because of how cute they acted.

Gabriele had more time to talk with Melody, and surprisingly Bonnie as well. Getting a better look at how they acted and work together was an interesting insight. Traveling with them also give him an idea about what he could do to complete his apology to Julia. Though, he was going to keep it a surprise for now.

The day was starting to end, however, and the two groups had made their rounds one more time to make sure they had everything; it was fun.

Also, surprisingly painless too.

The group met up around Julia's room, away from the crowds and other people that could see them; this was something that wasn't meant for prying eyes. Once they all gathered in the room, they all watched how the timepiece just repaired itself!

The swirling of glass and sand was beautiful and probably the most dangerous thing anyone had ever seen. Finally, the object of power was whole again, and Melody took this as her queue to head out for the night.

Waving goodbye to her friends, Melody and Bonnie took their leave. Leaving Kero, Julia, Gabriele, Lynn. MoonJumper had gone off somewhere and the older girl was unsure when he'll be coming back.

Lynn stretched, yawning out loud, "Well, not sure about half of you guys, but I'm beat!" Running around a cold ship was exhausting to her. "Cc is probably wondering where I'm at too... so I better head out.." but before she decided to head out, Lynn held her new hood over her head as said "Team Hoodie!"

In which Kero mimicked her and also said "Team Hoodie!" Holding onto his hood he always had up.

Gabriele also spoke up "I also have a hood. Am I part of this group?" He joked around, taking his hat off and putting up.

"Heck yeah!" Lynn smiled, never once seeing him use his hood; it was hilarious actually. It was always so strange not seeing a hat on his head.

With that, Lynn waved goodbye as well, leaving the three to do.. whatever.

"As much as I would like to stay as well, I noticed that Benjamin had snuck aboard the ship.." Gabriele got up, fixing himself "I need to go have a few words with him, have pleasant dreams, Julia.." he bowed slightly, and with one last look, he left her.

Kero and Julia just looked at each other, a blank emotionless stare, Until Kero had hopped onto the bed and slapped Julia with a pillow. The fight from earlier this morning was still unsettled and Kero wanted to finish it!

The two threw a small number of pillows at each other, laughing and giggling; Julia was suddenly attacked by an invisible force, she shrieked out with more laughter as MoonJumper grabbed her in a hug. Of course, it was an opportunity to poke at her sides, which Julis went ballistic.

"I'll save you!" Kero yelled with a smile, charging at the two.

They didn't stay up to late that night, mindfully of the other neighbors, and eventually, Julia slept soundly that night. MoonJumper watched over her and his grandson as Kero stayed close to his mother.

This was nice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Again, I'm sorry if this chapter seemed choppy, but I felt happy with it? I don't think I should, though. You guys know what happens next after the shard hunting, however! I'll do my best with that chapter as well.


	17. More Vacation Work

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! here's another chapter- I feel like there wasn't enough of the kid's in this chapter, so the next one I will try and focus on them. In the meantime, Julia goes full work mode and dose more work to keep herself from feeling things. On to the story!

**(Chapter Seventeen: More Vacation Work)**

Dark, that's all that could be seen. It was strange, the girl was familiar with it. Though she was used to walking through it, however, this time she had a body. Nothing. Just a vast empty, space.

"Child."

What was that?

"Green-eyed child!"

She could hear whispering words, something was calling out to her. Then sudden fast flash appeared before Julia; A box, a blurry man, and a large expansion of sand. As fast as those pictures came, they went away.

Julia snapped her eyes open, not making a move. She glanced over to her side as she saw Kero sleeping soundly, MoonJumper was not visible, but she knew he was watching her. Carefully getting out of the bed, she left her child to sleep.

Julia quietly walked out of the room and she knew Moon was following her. It was still night by the time she had woken up, reaching the dining area, few owls moseying about along with a few night time seals. She decided to sit at a table that was not sliding around like mad. While she sat, she held her hands to her face, waiting for a warm drink to come her way.

"Julia.. are you alright?" MoonJumper quietly asked, while clocked still. "You seem troubled."

What could have been those pictures that flashed in her mind? Who's voice was calling out to her from the void? Why did she see that chained up box.. so many thoughts came rushing through her head until she finally said a word.

"It's nothing, just.. just some thoughts woke me.." Julia softly smiled.

MoonJumper sighed, he looked at her in the eye, her eye patch still covered the other one "I can see something had been bothering you even before we arrived on the ship.." he placed a hand to her cheek, she closed her eyes as she felt it. "It's always going to be my job to worry about you... but you can talk to me. Like we used to."

Many things were bothering her at the moment... Gabriele, Zephyr, Sometimes Melody but it wasn't as strong of a feeling as she felt towards herself. Julia held a hand to her chest, almost trying to consult with her cousins within her locket.

Truth be told, Julia was scared to talk to MoonJumper about her past conflict with Gabriele.. considering what her dad had done to Zephyr in the past. What if she explained something wrong and he just... snaps? She doesn't want Gabriele to get hurt, he'd been hurt enough, and His hurt had hurt her as well. That was too much to think about and she couldn't stop.

Why did her heart feel pain every time she thought of what he said?

"Hewe uwu gow ma'am!" A little seal had come up with a serving tray on its head, holding the drink up to the troubled lady. "Be vewy cawefuw, it's stiww hot."

She smiled at the little thing, watching as it waddled away.

"I've been.. feeling pain.. not physically! I'm perfect find!" Julia waved a hand around as she quietly talked "it's just.. my heart hurts."

"Do you miss home..?" He asked, a little surprise in his voice.

Taking a sip of the green tea she had ordered, which was good in her opinion, and shook her head no "I miss my cousins.. but I'm happy I'm here"

The two had talked for a while, Julia skirting around other topics of why she was hurting, and what the cause of it was.

* * *

"Benjamin, I didn't think you'd sneak aboard," Gabriele spoke up. He stood at the top deck, looking up at the moon. "But I guess I was wrong."

It was odd, how such a thing that was in the sky, real as can be, looked like a beautiful painting. The stars stretched out like tree branches and shimmered like glitter on a fancy dress. He wished Julia could share this view with him... He wished Amalia could.

The badge seller, slowly hobbled out of the dark corner he stood at, taking a set at the small table with the umbrella that was tied up.

"A beautiful night, is it not? It's always so much more wonderful when it's cold." The badge seller looked up as well, patting a chair for Gabriele to join him.

The two sat down, the calm movement of the waves hitting the boat was relaxing. Gabriele spoke up once more "I don't think I'm getting anywhere much with Julia..."

"I have a feeling you are making the situation more complicated than it has to be." The twitching man calmly accused him, then looked at him "You're also still thinking of the past as well."

Gabriele just sighed, placing a hand to his head while he took his hat off. "You have suggestions, just get to the point." He looked down at the table.

The badge seller looked back up at the moon, mumming in thought. Taking a moment, the man spoke up again "what are some things she likes? I would have said something snarky, but honestly, you require help."

Gabriele, ignoring that lest comment, thought for a moment, what are some things she likes? He knows she's stubborn, protective, and kind... But the things she likes are still a mystery to him. Which didn't bother him until now.. how strange.

"It's clear to me you like her.." Badge seller suddenly said, leaning on his folded hands and never took his eye off of the doctor "in a stronger sense, which is honestly better than crying for a century-long gone."

"Are you telling me to forget?" It was hard not to with his PTSD and an ever reminded of why he can't.

"Funny you should say that, but no. Not forget, but to let go and try to forgive.." the man said, having a rather fast spasm then normal, "harder said than done, yes.. but clearly, everyone has changed besides you and the jester."

"And how do you expect me to do that?" Gabriele asked, irritation in his voice. "This body doesn't age unless I'm chopped to pieces!"

"Approach the man you hate the most and talk to him about Julia."

* * *

Day time rolled around, Julia found herself back in her bed. When did she pass out? The girl couldn't remember, but what she did remember was that strange dream, or where they visions? Either way, Julia was pretty sure she was brought back by MoonJumper.

The furious knocking was at the door of her room, rubbing her face, Julia put back on her cardigan and slowly made her way to the door. The knocking didn't cease until she had opened it.

There stood Melody and Bonnie, both exhausted and troubled. Julia immediately crouched down to see what was the matter with them.

"Juuuliiii!" The hatted child whined, unable to keep herself away from the older girl. "We need more hands-on-deck!"

"Why? What happened!?" The taller girl was caught off guard, confused by the sudden call to action.

"Nothing bad, we just.. a bit more off then we could chew.." Bonnie added, sighing and rolling her shoulders "So the story goes, we found one of our Timepieces... However.."

"They put it in the lost and found!" Melody stomped her foot, looking upset "and they won't let us take it unless we work for it!"

"Even though it's ours" the bow child chimed in, shrugging.

Julia hummed "well.. that sound familiar.. kinda like our entire experience on this planet." The taller girl softly smiled at Melody "at least we're not fighting.. here, I'll tell you what." The girl stood back up, stretching her arms, then looked back down at the two younger girls.

"I'll help out with the hard stuff, we'll focus on one thing each." Hearing this made Melody smile, and Bonnie whispered a small 'yes' out of joy.

The three walked to the kitchen, Since Julia was more akin to cleaning larger areas, she decided to stick there. It was a major hub of travel with the roots the two children were using.

Between running with small babies, which were still on the losses, Carrying plates and glass cups from the top to the kitchen, throwing away trash, and doing laundry. It was just a whole mess for the two kids.

The kitchen was already a hazard itself for moving, so cleaning up the area and making sure the seals don't set the ship on fire was a top priority to Julia. It was honestly a miracle that hey hadn't already. Why weren't there more broken things with all this sludge on the ground?

"Hewwo, miss! awe you hewe to hewp us?" A small little seal wobbled up to Julia, those beady eyes looking into hers.

"That's right you little puffball of snow," Julia smiled at the pup "were's the mop? I'm going to clean the floors... and... turn down those ovens.." The tall girl eyed the raging fires of those square metal contraption.

"Yay! thank you!" They danced in place, happy that they have some tall to assist them.

"Okay, kiddo." Julia turned around to Melody, Bonnie had vanished somewhere. "You should focus on the top of the ship, clear out glass cups and plates." She pointed out, "when you do, bring them here and just put them on the counter. I'll do the rest."

Melody saluted, charging off to start on her job. Immediately after, Bonnie arrives with more hands; Kero has come to his mother's aid.

"There you are, Bonnie!" Julia looked up, trying not to get burned and turning down the stoves, then started getting a bucket, filling it up at the sink. "I need you to run around the ship and find trash. If they're cans or bottles, crush them!" Julia points out, already starting to clean the floor.

"You got it!" Bonnie ran off as well, leaving Kero to watch her.

The boy tilted his head, watching as Julia was skillful and quickly mopping up the gunk on the ground. Working at a convenient store and cleaning up after rowdy children were paying off.

"Mama, what do you want me to do?" Kero asked, looking around. If she planned on cleaning up this entire area, the Kero thinks he needs to step up too!

"Hmm, let's see!" Julia stopped for a moment to think, then continued to mop. "Think you can deliver dishes to people?" The girl eyes all the plates with the food they haven't left the counter yet. "Be careful though! I don't want you hurting yourself."

Kero nodded, taking one plate at a time. There were little papers with numbers on them, showing what table they were supposed to get to. The sack child carefully traveled back and forth, even seen taking the elevator up to get those who sat above.

Julia was now focused and finishing up the last of the spill zone, a little seal rocking back and forth in one of the sinks. They were having a good old time, but that sink was going to be needed soon. Melody was seen running back into the kitchen with a few empty plates.

She left them and headed off again, almost like she was on a timer.

Once the floor was spotless, Julia moved over to the counters, putting dishes in the sink and wiped counter surface down. Cracking her neck as a short break, she went back to it.

* * *

Lynn roamed around, arms folded and watched as a few of her friends zoomed around. They were busy working for the captain for some reason? Why would they need to work in the first place? Even Julia was working herself on her vacation!

The girl just hummed, shrugging her shoulders. If that's what they want to do, who is she to stop them?

"Excuse me, Lynn.." the girl turned her head to the tall doctor, "You wouldn't perhaps know where Julia is, would you? I need to ask her were.." he seemed to sigh "where MoonJumper is.."

The hooded girl raised a brow at the man but said where Julia's whereabouts were "She's taken over the kitchen, be careful. Last I saw, she was armed with a mop." She pointed away from her.

Gabriele nodded his thanks and headed for the kitchen, why would she be there of all places? Once he arrived, he stopped short of the door. He could bear an ongoing conversation between Julia and Kero as the sound of rushing water and clacking ceramic.

"Mama... I'm really happy you saved me that day." Gabriele just listened in, if he were to walk through these doors now, Kero might go quiet.

The poor boy looked like he wanted to talk for a while now.

"If you hadn't gotten me out of that cage, I probably would have withered away.." said the boy, the sink went quiet, indicating that Julia had looked up from what she was doing. "And I'm happy you gave me a new name, but I remember my old one! Though, I'd much prefer Kero!"

"And why's that little buddy?" Gabriele heard Julia ask, also curious as to why the child refused his original name.

"Because that's my life with you! You're my family now, and I'm happy with it! It's like starting over, I get to finally live a life.. that was taken from me." Kero started to whisper.

There were footsteps, Julia was on the move. Gabriele quickly looked through the circular windows on the push doors to see that Julia had walked over to Kero, who was sitting on a stepping stool and kissed him on the head. A kind smile on her face.

"I love you, mama!" The boy smiled at her, hugging her.

Julia hugged back just as hard, Chuckling "But what is your real name? You got me curious now kiddo."

"It's Louis!" He smiled.

The doctor walked in like he wasn't eavesdropping for the past few minutes, happy to know that these two were bonding closer. His face didn't show it so Julia and Kero were left in the dark. He took Kero's words to thought about starting over... helped a little to listen, though he was still unsure.

"Ah, Julia! So this is where you've been." He waved at Kero then turned to Julia again, "Working on your vacation? You never seem to catch a break."

Julis smiled at him "couldn't help it, Captain Melody called me to action.." the girl then scratched her head "plus it looked like she needed help.."

"I see." The doctor nodded, "Well.. do you need any help?" He'll ask about Moon later.

Julia stood back at a sink, rinsing off dishes from the soap that covered them. "I'm good, thanks though.."

"Are you sure? I could cook with the food-" clattering of plates dropping from her hand and Gabriele jumped from the sudden noise.

"No, Gabriele. You're a good cook..." Julis looked at him, a serious expression on her face "but I don't want you to do something stupid."

"Helping you is considered stupid?" The doctor crossed his arms.

"No- Getting burnt is!" Julia point at his hands, "I noticed that the other day Gabe, I appreciate the thought, but I don't want you hurting yourself anymore!"

"Burns cannot hurt me, Julia! Sure they leave marks, but I never feel them!" He called out, half lying to her. she was already fretting about him, he didn't want another thing for her to worry about.

"That's even worse!" Julia stressed.

"Uh.." Kero spoke up.. "you could help with the laundry..?" The two arguing adults looked at the child. Julia slowly calmed down hearing this, water and soap. That was a better option than fire.

"Yeah! There's only one seal down there; the pup could use your help." Julia went back to washing, trying to forget that she was under stress at all.

Gabriele just stared at the back of her head, then walked off down the stairs that connects the kitchen.

"Mama.. are you and Gabriel me okay..?" Kero asked once the doctor was gone

"I'm not sure, baby.." Julia sighed.

* * *

Kero wondered around, the day was almost up. Melody was able to retrieve the Timepiece the was stuck in the lost and found, returning it to the vault on the ship. The child all gathered around one another, almost like it was a secret organization; Lynn was at the head of a table on the top deck.

They stood a good amount away from any eyes and ears. "So, something is going on between Julia and Gabriele." Lynn crossed her arms, as the three looked at her. "I was the first one to notice something before we came back to Subcon. Now I'm sure something is up."

"They had a huge argument in the kitchen.. but it was strange." Kero fiddled with his finger. "It wasn't like an agreement where they hated each other."

Lynn pointed at the sack child "Like I said, I think he loves her-" then looked to Melody and then Bonnie "But something happened in between the Zephyr fiasco."

"What could have possibly happened? Gabriele was a vegetable." Bonnie raised a brow, thinking it was absurd.

Melody gasped, thinking to herself. This gained attention from the rest of the group. "Kero, the dreamscape! They were both asleep!"

"So they fought within their minds..?" Kero looked at her, understanding, though the other two were at a loss.

"You could say that." The group screamed out, the sudden voice of the badge seller scared the children. "You're not too far from the truth, but you do not know all of it."

"Can you not sneak on us!" Bonnie shouted, "your gonna give me a heart attack!"

"I have that effect. Though That is just who I am." The badge seller held a smile in his voice.

"You said we don't know the whole truth. Tell us!" Melody looked at him, wanting to know.

"You see, I'm trying to help him conquer his past." The twitching man said, "He confused Julia for a girl of his past he was supposed to marry." He tilted his head "I was told he had said some very hurtful things."

"And now he's trying to fix it with your help." Lynn mused to herself. Then she looked up and pointed "Wait a minute, that just makes you an over-glorified wingman!"

"In a sense. They are very entertaining when together." He tapped his cane down for a second "do you child wish to assist him?"

"Are you saying we should play matchmaker?" Bonnie asked perplexed.

"They are already a match." The strange man said, searching for something in his pockets. "They just need a little push." He held out something, a music player, that belonged to Julia.

The children all looked at each other. Things could go well from here or horribly wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> there we have this chapter, as stated at the top I'll going to attempt to make it mostly about the kids trying to help push things into action. though we are coming to an end of the Arctic arc, I'm going to be making up my own arc for next coming chapters to come and save the Metro Arc for last, as I think I stated before in a review answer. I'm having a hard time remembering.


	18. Blue Moon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, hi! Take this- *runs off in a stuttering mess*

**(Chapter Eighteen: Blue Moon)**

"Do-do doo-do do doo." Melody quietly sang to herself, wandering the ship after hours. Though she wasn't alone, the entire shorty squad was right behind her. Lynn held a confused face at the actions Melody was doing.

The hatted girl was hugged against a wall, sliding around with her finger pointing like a gun. Bonnie had joined in shortly after. "You do realize this doesn't make us anymore sneaky... right?" Lynn deadpanned, but Kero just giggled at the girls.

It was safe to say he didn't understand them, However, it did look fun.

"Bow, this is Hat. Over." Melody held her hand to her face like she was talking on a radio.

"This is Bow, I read you loud and clear. Over." Bonnie replies, doing the same action.

A few steps through a corridor and the hatted girl spoke again "We are approaching a possible location for operation 'Fluff'. Over."

The three girls and boy stopped and looked out at the garden, the waterfall was the only noise besides the soft music being played over the ships' sound system.

"Hmm.." Lynn hummed out, holding her finger up like a frame. She turned around and looked at the various angles, then she looked up at the night sky. It was odd that there was an opening in the roof here, but it was pretty. "Yeah... I see it.." Lynn noted quietly.

"We should call this a night for now," the hooded girl turned to look at her group. "We need to find out when this place is at its emptiest. Having people look down at them from the balconies would be strange..-"

Everyone nodded, Melody and Bonnie fist-bumped each other with a smile. They could be on to something here.

"Why are you children doing up so late..?" The group didn't shout, but they were surprised that they got caught.

Nighttime was the only time MoonJumper could show himself without fear of having a crowd when he had noticed the four children quietly scampering about. What were they up to? "Shouldn't you lot be asleep..?"

"Oh heeey, Moon!" Lynn stressed her face into a smile, pointing finger guns at him "We.. we were just looking for you!" The group of children looked at Lynn, wondering what she was on about "I think I remembered Gabriele wanted to see you for some reason. You should go find him!"

They took this as a moment of 'expect the unexpected' and scrambled. Melody and Bonnie teleported back to the spaceship, Lynn hopped up the balconies with precise acrobatics, and Kero.. well. He just ran.

Neither of the children gave him time to comprehend the situation the way the scattered, leaving him confused as he watched them run. The old ghost scratched his head, a perplexed face as he stared off for a moment. Shrugging, he decided to take what Lynn had said to heart, beginning his search for the doctor.

* * *

"I'm I doing something wrong here?" Gabriele pondered, walking around the top deck again. He couldn't help staying away from the view of the stars, they were nice and helped him think.

Maybe he could get some ideas from them? He sighed to himself thinking 'talking to that ghost child was in vain.' Though, he couldn't help but wonder if that boy was alright. The doctor hopes nothing destroys that child's soul.

"Gabriele-" the sudden voice made the plague doctor jump, turning around he places a hand on his chest to stop his no longer existing heart. A habit that was coming back it seemed.

"Ah... it's you.." he noted once he saw the puppeteer, MoonJumper seemed to glow when the real moon shined down at them.

"I was told by Lynn that you wanted to see me?" The ghost tilted his head, a habit from Julia. "Is something the matter?"

He wanted to talk to Julia about his whereabouts.. but this works too. However, the man couldn't bring himself to start talking, then he remembered what he's heard...

'Clearly, everyone has changed besides you and the jester.'

'It's like starting over.'

The man fears what he might become if he stayed latched to these old feelings.. these old wants and wishes. It could drive you... mad. Biting the bullet, Gabriele was willing to move on.

"Yes... I wanted to talk to you about Julia.." this grabbed the entity's attention, Gabriele continued talking "I.. got into an agreement with her, and I've upset her terribly."

"You're the reason Julia isn't herself..?" MoonJumper whispered, it almost sounded like he was mad, yet he didn't attack him. "I haven't seen Julia act like this since her middle school days." The ghost held a face, unable to confirm the emotion. Though, he shook it off and looked back at the doctor.

"I've been trying to make things up to her for some time now.." Gabriele explained, looking away for a moment "but... just when I thought I had something... She gets angry at me again."

"What exactly were you trying to do?" MoonJumper enquired.

"Uh... cook... for her...?" Gabriele shrunk with his own words, he knew why Julia was angry this time, saying it out loud made him realize that it... wasn't a good idea after all. He placed a hand to his face "Good heavens, why did I think that was a good idea?" Then he looked to his own hands, slightly blackened in small patches.

MoonJumper just chuckled at him, a toothy smile, his fangs always bother Gabriele. "Well... if you must know, Julia is quite fond of the stars. She loves listening to music, and her favorite consumable items are green tea and anything citrus dessert based."

Gabriele looked up at him, shocked at what he was hearing. MoonJumper was actually assisting him? Another fact that Julia really, really likes tea for some reason? Granted, he drank much of it when he was alive.

"Don't get me wrong, however," MoonJumper moved closer to the doctor "if I find out you severely hurt her in any way, mentally or physically," his face even closer to Gabriele's now "I will rip you to shreds like I did Zephyr." He threatened the doll.

MoonJumper has changed.. but he's still violent.

"I would never," Gabriele swore on his word.

In the distance, the two children who were left behind and scrambled to flee MoonJumper watched from afar under a table for cover. This information was great; it explains why they needed Julia's music player.. but how did the badge seller know? Kero and Lynn looked at each other, the start of a plan was finally forming.

* * *

Julia scramble around her room the next morning, slight panic on her face. Something was missing and she refused to believe it was. At that time, the group of children came walking past her living quarters, hearing audible shuffling from behind the door, and then the tall girl exited the room.

Julia spotted the kids, worry still showing "Hey, kids? Have you seen my MP3 player?" She scratched her head, the looks of shock flying past her head as she kept wondering about her beloved music player. "I think I might have missed placed it.. or maybe I left it on the spaceship..?" She mumbled that last part, walking off, Julia was too consumed in her thoughts as usual.

Melody, Bonnie, and the two others sighed in relief as Julia walked away. Today they were scouting the area for daily activity around the ship, what some events might happen, and what could possibly bring a crowd of people away from the rooms.

Though, nothing was happening at the small casino, nor the restaurant. There had to be something that could happen!

"Man.." Bonnie groaned out, scratching her head. "This was much harder then I thought..." she then turned to the group behind her "what could draw in a crowd?"

In the distance, the children saw Cooking cat with.. with the Conductor? They were happily chatting together as the walked, arm in arm. That was a strange sight, especially for Lynn. The two adults noticed the group, how their faces seemed troubled and slightly confused.

"Well hey there, dearies! What seems to be the problem?" Cc looked at them, one ear tilted to the side in curiosity. "You lot look more confused than a puppy looking at a mirror."

"I.. we..-" Melody stumbled with her words, trying to be discreet as possible. The last thing she wanted was to give word about operation 'Fluff'

"We're trying to hook Julia and Gabriele together." Lynn just flatly stated. Melody and Bonnie both looked at her with an unbelievable face. "What..?! Cc has mom powers! She'll know we're lying!"

"You could have said anything else but that thought!" Bonnie yelled back, while Melody held a hand to her face.

"Ey.. wot? Tall lassie and the stuffed doctor?" The Conductor hummed, a hand placed on his chin "yer know, that would make for an interestin movie if I were into the supernatural." he muttered out, but the shook his head and readjusted his hat.

"Well, there's always someone for everyone I suppose.." Cc nodded to herself, then smiled, her attention was back at the children. "So what is the exact problem? Ya know, besides Gabriele's physical situation."

"You see-" Lynn started, the two girls looked at her, and Kero just kicked his foot into the floor in aimlessly. "I know for a fact that there's something in between those two but they got into a fight!"

"We want them to make up, and we found a good place for that!" Melody said, then looked around to make sure nobody was walking this way and whispered: "but we want it to be a privet ordeal, so they can talk and think."

"It's the garden, and we don't know how to get rid of a crowd." Bonnie made it more clear for the two adults.

"Hmm, I see.." Cc hummed, trying to think with what she was given. She has one plan, and it'll be the first time she's ever done a live show. "I have a plan dears!" Her tail swished, as she then turned to the Conductor "sugar, you're a movie director- think you can help me with a camera?"

"Yer better believe I can!" The Conductor smiled at her, "but eh.. whatcha goin ta do?"

* * *

The sun was setting, Julia had given up on her MP3 player. She's convinced herself that she might have left it on Melody's ship. If she were to lose that player, she'd lose everything that was left of her grandpappy. All his and her favorite songs were on that small device. It was her whole world when she was little, and being able to relive those memories made her happy.

Dancing with her grandfather, singing, it was one of the many things she didn't want to forget.

She found herself in the laundry room, wearing a rather casual attire that she had brought as back up. Just a plain green shirt, and dark gray plaid sweatpants. In reality, it was the clothing she slept in. Taking a seat on the ground, Julia decided to mess with her eye patch to pass time.

Now and again she'd switch here eye patch from eye to eye. Being in a room where she doesn't have to hide her eye was rather nice, however, during the mindless entertainment she stopped. Something in the room seemed off, and at first, she thought it was a seal at the corner of her corrupted eye.

Julia turned her head slowly, with a neutral expression that looked like a threat, but never intended to be. A cloaked figure held a gripped on their metallic weapon, like it was about to strike, however, neither moved.

"Well... that's disconcerting." Julia stated, looking at the dark hood. She couldn't see any features under there; just a black void.

"Hey, Julia! You down there!?" Lynn came running down the steps, unaware of the cloaked figure. "Cooking cat is going to set up a show! You might want to get out of here-" the Mustached girl stopped talking, looking at Julia who was staring at nothing.

The moment Julia looked away was when the cloaked figure vanished, only then did she realize the dimensions were acting up. The person was never really there. That or maybe another ghost snuck aboard?

"What are you looking at?" Lynn asked

"Nothing.." Julia gathered her clothes once they were finished. There didn't seem to be a dryer here, so she ends up spending her time drying her clothes with a hairdryer. It was very inconvenient honestly.

* * *

Lynn and Bonnie hurried around the kitchen. Thanks to Julia cleaning the place up, it was fit for Cooking cat to set up a cooking show, the children were surprised to hear that she was pretty famous when it came to culinary arts. She even had a review show about different foods.

The Conductor dealt with the camera positioning, he decided that holding the camera around like a cameraman would prove to be more authentic or give it a little flair to the show itself. The two children agreed to be cooking cat's assistants while Kero and Melody set off on their part of the mission.

"Hello, my lovelies, my beautiful viewers!" Cc announced once she went live. The computer behind the scenes captured the recording of the camera and sent it to the world "As you all know, I'm currently aboard the SS. Literally can't sink to bring you a very special episode!"

A crowd in the dining area started to form, televisions that were on around and away from the residents' area picked up on her show for some to watch.

"Oh, a special episode indeed!" Cooking cat smiled kindly, and a few audiences clapped for her. "Honeycomb, can you please bring me the ingredients for this recipe we're gonna work on?" She looked to Lynn, and the child happily complied.

* * *

Melody and Kero made their way to the captain. If they remember correctly he controlled the speakers on the ship, and if they wanted to play a song they should ask him! While Kero navigated, the hatted girl looked through the player, all these songs seemed very... old to her.

"Wow.. these are the kind of song the CEO would like.." The girl mumbled to herself. Now thinking that maybe that Tim and Julia would hit it off with some conversation. The girl smiled to herself thinking out loud to herself "I should call everyone later to see how things are.."

"Melody we're almost there!" Kero smiled at her, Turning around. "Think you can handle it from here? I have to go and make sure mama and Gabriele meet!"

Melody nodded, smiling at the sack child. She watched the boy runoff, and when he disappeared she continued. Once she was at the stairs then lead up she halted for a moment. The cameras that were pointed at the garden showed they weren't there yet, but she still needed to get ready.

Up the steps, it was her job now to explain the situation to the stoic walrus captain. She heard the man sigh, clearly tired, Melody cleared her throat to make herself known and then saluted to him.

"You again, pup?" He mumbled, looking at her when he turned around. "What ya want know?"

"Okay- uh... I-" Melody fumbled a bit, trying to think of the correct words "I have a request! Not for me personally but for my sister."

The captain raised a brow at the child, he remembered the tall girl in green. The one who was insane enough to clean the entire kitchen on his ship. Julia was unaware, but she was still able to cash in a favor.

Melody was going to do it for her.

"What exactly are we talkin about?" The walrus was inclined to help if it wasn't anything stupid. If it was, he'd just tell the child to leave, but he was willing to listen.

"Okay, when we see my sister and the man in blue approach each other at the garden.." Melody looked at him, a serious look on her face "I want you to play a few songs over the sound system.." the girl handed the player over to him.

The captain took it, looked at it for a moment. This player looked old and strange, and he wasn't even sure if he'd seen it before. Without moving his head, he eyed the child unamused, but all Melody gave him was an awkward smile.

"I'll help, don't worry.." said the girl.

* * *

A few hours went by while Julia was safely in her room and almost done drying her clothes. It wasn't an excellent job, but the clothes were wearable as she tested it; only a tiny bit damp. She looked at herself in the bathroom mirror, despite everything that had happened in the past, she looked okay.

Tired looking as always, but okay.

She was amazed at how strong the healing pons was as she touched her face, but was shocked when she heard they only heal bruised skin and aches. You'd have to go to a hospital if you've suffered anything more lethal.

Like her stab wound.

Knocking could be heard at the door, this broke Julia out of her numbed state. Blinking a few times, she shook her head and walked out. The knocking didn't stop until the door opened, and Kero was there a smile on his face.

This, in turn, made her smile "what's up little buddy?" Julia asked him.

"Go into the garden, mama!" Kero pointed out towards the balcony.

Julia was slightly confused, but she did as he asked, opening the sliding door she saw Gabriele there. He was just waiting in the garden, unaware that Julia was already here. The place seemed empty, where the residents still at Cc's Cooking show?

Gabriele finally turned his head, in his hand he held a drink, which was odd because... well- He's a doll now. He noticed Julia looking at him and he waved up at her. Still a little confused she waved back.

When Julia turned around, Kero was gone and the door was closed. Kero had vanished on her and she was left with Gabriele alone. The last time the girl was alone with the doctor, something bad happened. She was just half tempted to just shut the door and pretend she never saw anything... but then remember she already waved at him.

That would have just been rude.

"Julia, please... I just want to talk." Gabriele was heard, and she looked at him. "I.. I brought you some tea..?"

Well shit, she couldn't refuse that offer.

Hopping over the railing, she carefully landed on the pathed ground. She approached the man holding her drink and she happily took it.

The same soft music could be heard playing over the sound system as Gabriele looked at her. "Julia... I'm sorry if I've only caused you to stress over this trip..." the girl looked up at him after taking a sip of the warm drink "I've been trying my best to make you happy, but... I think I've just made it worse."

Julia watched him turn his head away, she tilted her head at him, "I appreciate you doing your best Gabriele... I'm not mad at you.. just.. worried.." she had gotten his attention now "I've been dealing with a few things myself, and I guess I was just... protective of you? If that makes sense?"

She pointed to his hands, she had noticed and Julia was scared he'd burn himself to the ground for her; That was not what she wanted.

"I see.." The doctor looked down at himself "on a lighter note.. we match now." He chuckled, holding a hand next to hers. The two scarred and burned hands side by side.

Julia cracked a small smile at that. Stupid, but it was cute. Then while she was trying to think of what else to say, a familiar song started playing through the sound system. She knows this song, and she couldn't believe it was playing throughout the whole ship!

"Blue Moon!" She cried out, wondering why this song was playing know after she had lost her player.

_Blue moon, you saw me standing alone-_

"You know this song?" Gabriele asked her, and she turned back to him, taking another sip of her drink.

She explained "My grandfather and I used to dance and sing to this song," she reminisced "played it all the time when I came over to his house upset." One of the fewer songs that calmed her down, and made her feel happy. "Frank Sinatra is the best..."

Hearing this, Gabriele asked one question:

"Do you wish.. to dance?" He held a hand to her, and Julia felt that same feeling when he found her again back home.

It had been so long since she had danced.

Putting her drink off to the side, and placing her hand in his, she accepted it; if she was out of practice, so was he.

_Without a dream in my heart, Without a love of my own-_

The two slow danced together, this was so stupid, yet it still made her smile. Gabriele was smiling at her, be she couldn't tell. Though, as the song played on, things finally started clicking in her head. Listening to this old love song, she realized what that feeling was.

"Hey, Gabriele.." Julia's voice was soft, lost in thought, almost unsure if she should say this at all "I think... I figured out why what you said hurt so much.." Julia had been twirled around as she faced Gabriele again, the two slowly coming to a stop "I.. I think I'm.. in love with you.."

_Blue moon, you knew just what I was there for-_

Gabriele froze up, almost uncertain that he heard her correctly. "P-Pardon..?"

_You heard me saying a prayer for-_

Julia was incredibly insecure at the moment, as they listened to the music playing over the speakers. Everything she thought about throughout this trip was coming out of her mouth "I want to hate you. But I can't." The girl looked down, almost like she felt selfish "though, how am I any different? I left you. I was being stupid and forgot I wasn't the only one Zephyr was after." She shut her eyes, but Gabriel held her chin so that she could look at him "when I- I saw you on the ground that day... I was so, so very scared that I might have lost you.."

"Julia.." Gabriele looked at her, unsure of what to say other than apologizing for the past couple of days they've been here

"I didn't want to lose you.." She placed her head on his chest, and the doctor hugged her.

"It's rather funny actually.." Gabriel whispered, perhaps he should say it. Now was the time... "I never thought I'd ever fall in love again.. but here you are."

_Someone I really could care for-_

Julia looked up at him, surprised. The doctor kept talking "I was angry at first, thinking about moving on.. leaving my life behind.. everything I knew and cared about.." His shoulders sagged a bit, turning his head to look at the waterfall "But we both know _first hand_ on what it's like to hold onto the past.. it isn't pretty."

He referenced Vanessa, locked away in her manor. The writings on the wall about her prince being gone, and him coming back... It made them both shiver, but they softly chuckled.

_And then there suddenly appeared before me-_

"Julia, when I was left wondering realms nobody would ever dream of, Numb as could be.." he looked down at her "Not once did I think I'd ever feel again. That feeling of being loved, worried over.. you make me feel alive again."

_The only one my arms will hold-_

Julia smiled at this, it was cheesy, but she loved these kinds of things. "So.. we're gonna be a thing now..?"

"I believe so," Gabriele chuckled, "though, I can't help but think this was a setup..."

"Well, it's a nice set up.." Julia placed her head on his chest, giggling to herself.

"What..? What's so funny?" He asked, head tilted.

"You smell like laundry soap." The tiniest of things could make this girl laugh and it amused the doctor, he laughed with her.

The song played on, the night rolled around, and the two danced more under the stars. It was lovely.

Quiet spectators above in the balconies watched below, The Badge Seller on one side, and on a lower balcony, a very quiet Mafia Boss who was forgotten and left behind by accident. What a show that was.

"What a happy occasion.," he mumbled, he'd smile if he could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So uh. I'm officially calling Julia/Gabriele ship 'FedoraHearts'. Next chapter we'll finally get to the destruction of property via iceberg.


	19. The Titanic

**(Chapter Nineteen: The Titanic)**

The children all cheered at a table on the top deck, it was nice and sunny, but still cold. Those who could drink had a nice glass of fruity juice and clacked them together as a celebration to the success. Melody was the first to look back at the two adults who were simply chatting away about something.

"So, Melody- what did you do with Julia's music player?" Lynn asked, then she sipped her beverage.

The hatted girl smiled, "I left it back on the spaceship," she shrugged, looking back at the group "going to make it look like she did leave it there."

"Smart, smart.." the bow child nodded, looking off at the distance. "We still have to find that last timepiece though." Bonnie eyed her captain, wondering as to how they should do that.

"Last I checked, we got them all off the ship..." Melody looked at everyone at the table, a knowing look on her face "there's one more That's not on the ship but it's out of the spaceship's range to jump."

The group chattered on, Kero couldn't keep his eyes away from the two. Julia, his adoptive mother now has someone she can try to depend on. Does this mean Gabriele could be his dad sometime in the future? A mother and a father... would be nice to have again. Kero smiled, looking away off onto the distance when something caught his attention.

It was bright, shined like a star and seemed to be on an iceberg. From the start the ice made him feel uncomfortable, but all in all, the boat ride had been really fun! He pointed at the distance, grabbing everyone's attention.

"There's a bright thing over there.. is that your timepiece?" He asked, tilting his head.

The trio of girls quickly turned after hearing that, finding out that it was indeed true. It was a timepiece, the one they couldn't get to!

Melody smiled at the boy "Kero, you did it!" Getting up and running to the rail, she held her hat to make sure it didn't fly off. Everyone else soon joined her, looking off at the marvel.

From afar, Julia and Gabriele both looked up at the commotion. The children were all staring off at the glint of light from a pillar of ice. "So, that's another timepiece I'm assuming?" Julia looked back at the doctor nodding her head.

"Guess the children are trying to figure out how to get to it.." Julia mused out.

For once Julia was able to think of something else besides these hidden feelings she now understood but it still didn't stop her from thinking about that odd desert dream she had a few days back. Though that wasn't important now, what was important was this nagging feeling like she'd seen this kind of scenario before...

"Cruise ship, hundreds of people, Iceberg..." she mumbled out, and Gabriele gave her a questionable glance. The girl looked up at him, almost embarrassed that she was caught mumbling odd things. She just smiled at him "Oh! Don't mind me, I was just thinking..."

"About what?" Gabriele propped his head on one hand, listening to her.

"Uh? Oh..- Well," she hummed again, looking at her drink she had "I was thinking of something familiar to this situation... though not entirely- the ship is called 'literally can't sink', right?"

"Of course, what about it...?" All the doctor could think about was what she was getting at. What about the situation and the ship's name?

"Well.. there was this movie I can almost remember.. the major thing was the ship hitting an iceberg." Julia looked off into the distance, eyeing a large amount of ice floating by. "The titanic. Said to be the strongest ship to be built. Only to be taken out by a sharp formation of ice."

"Oh... well that does sound forbidding..." he then turned his attention out to the waters. Watching the icebergs.

The captain was strolling by on a short break, when he couldn't help but overhear the two as he passed by "don't you worry, as long as we stay on course, we won't even get near those things."

The two look at him as the captain adjusted his hat and made his way over to the far railing to smoke, a small seal with a silver tray with an ashtray on their head.

Gabriele whispered "smoking is going to kill that man.." looking away final "second hand will give that little seal trouble breathing in the future."

Julia hummed in agreement.

The two adults had lost sight of Melody and Bonnie, Lynn was seen chatting with Cooking Cat who was happily sitting with the Conductor. While Kero came shuffling over to her and Gabriele with a happy smile. Julia smiled back, open arms for her child. Kero was now sitting on her lap, and for once, the group looked like a happy family... despite two of them being living dolls.

Julia will not be making the same mistake as her father, she'll love Kero as much as her grandfather loved her.

* * *

"Okay Bonnie, you ready!" Melody sat at the helm of the ship, the seals didn't seem to mind so much that children were sitting in the captain's chair. They seemed to be happily pushing buttons and monitoring the ship.

"Ready, Captain!" Bonnie saluted, they both were ready to get the last Timepiece here. After this, they'll have to figure out how to get to the underground system. So far they do not know of it. "Are you? Piloting a boat is way different than the spaceship, Melody."

"Oh, I'm sure I'll do fine!" Melody waved at her friend.

Finally putting her hands on the wheel, she did her best to navigate. However, she wasn't expecting the turning to be so... quick. She panicked as she watched the seals who were sitting down get thrown off their chairs, Bonnie had to hold onto the railing to stop herself from flying as well.

Melody quickly tried to fix herself, but that only caused the ship to move the other way, throwing the seals around again. You could hear screaming and shouting throughout the whole ship.

"Hewwo! The captain had a mess-" the seal started to talk but was cut off when someone grabbed the radio.

"Hand me that microphone! Who's at the wheel!?" There was panic in the captain's voice, Melody and Bonnie gulped, refusing to say a word. "We're heading straight for an iceberg! All hands on deck!"

* * *

Gabriele quickly scratched around, the side of the ship had tilted and turned over onto its side. He held onto a ledge that had been destroyed by the iceberg they had it.

"Julia!" He screamed out "Kero!" He looked frantically at any location they might have been.

Julia and Kero had gotten thrown in different directions when the ship had hit, and he was unsure if they were harmed or not! A few screams rang out again, people doing their best to scale the ship to a lifeboat, or had landed on the ice itself. This was a disaster, but it was bound to happen, wasn't it?

"Mama! Where are you!?" A child's scream called out, Gabriele looked down. Kero was floundering in the cold water, Ice sticking to his fabric and making it difficult for him.

"Kero! Hold on, I'm coming to get you!" Gabriele yelled out, trying to slide down the wall. Though his hand had lost its grip, footing slipping, and crash into the cold water he couldn't feel. He was in, he might as well swim; Quickly making his way to the child, he grabbed hold of Kero.

"Where's mama?! I don't see her!" Kero cried, clinging onto the man who was holding him tight. Kero was having a panic attack, breathing heavily as the ice around him made him remember the terrors of Vanessa.

Gabriele quickly looked around, a lifeboat not too far but still out of reach. "Kero, look at me. Everything is going to be okay!" The doctor started swimming, ice was starting to form on him. "Keep your eye closed, and I'll tell you when to open them, okay? Just relax... I have you."

Kero whimpered, eyes closing and trying to forget that they were in the water.

* * *

Under the water, there Julia was, pant leg snagged in a sharp piece of metal. Her eyes snapped open as tiny bubbles escaped her mouth, trying to keep calm as the bites of frozen surrounded her. Julia did her best to tug herself free, but the fabric wouldn't rip off.

Damned, she was already in a situation like this, was water trying to get at her again? Was it angry that it couldn't kill her before? Julia cured Neptune's name, why was he so pissy?

A large tendril locked itself around her, pulling Julia free from her snag. Slowly being pulled up from the depths as to not suffer from decompression sickness. "I got you, spark!" The familiar voice of King grabbed her attention; As much as Julia wanted to smile she had to focus on herself not losing what little air she had managed to grab.

When they two breached, Julia was on King's head gasping for breath, and once she had enough air, the girl with the corrupted eye bellowed out:

"You cannot claim me, Neptune!" Julia raises her arms into the air, only to lay down on her back to keep breathing again.

"What a positive reaction!" King laughed, trying to find the nearest lifeboat for the girl "glad to see the static of drowning doesn't get you down!"

Julia laughed, she cheered for the large octopus "King, you're the best!" She sat up, looking around not that she could breathe again. The girl kept en eye out for Kero and Gabriele and preyed that they were okay, as well as the others.

* * *

"Captain this was a bad, bad idea!" Bonnie yelled running through the ship.

The two girls had been rescuing those who could help themselves, or had been trapped within the ships continued sinking. Both the girls held guilty faces as they ran back and forth. They shouldn't have touched the controls, they should have just taken a lifeboat! They could have rowed carefully around the icebergs. Instead, they crashed the ship, and now everything was a huge unfixable mess!

Melody hasn't been able to find Julia, or the others yet as she dropped off yet another seal on a lifeboat. The small babies Bonnie carried were now tightly in a life preserver, unaware of the horrible situation at hand.

They had more people to save!

Both running back into the boat she and her friend searched around. Once the first boat was filled, it rowed off to safety as they left. A hard to open door finally swung open from a blast that burst from the wall.

They traveled on the slanted wall of the ship, Icicles fell one from the iceberg they had hit. Carefully maneuvering around the hazards, the picked up a seal along the way. The two girls had jumped through a door that let them back to the top deck that was partly in the water now.

A whole new area was around them, and more people that needed rescuing. Bonnie spotted a lifeboat not too far, and she called out to grab her captain's attention. Once Melody could see the boat she ran to go place the seal they had saved down.

Bonnie had climbed around a smaller ice formation and rescued the strange fish surfer dude.

Once everyone they had found was settled, Melody and Bonnie split off again. The hatted girl had found the Mafia jar boss just inches away from the edge on a pillar. If he falls, he'll be a frozen jar with eyes! Melody swept in and grabbed him just as he was about to sway off from an explosion.

"Hatted child! What is the meaning of this!?" He yelled, shifting his eyes to look at the child "why has the ship crashed?!" But Melody didn't answer him, she was more focused on saving people.

More shouts from the boss as the child placed him down. She ran off and passed Bonnie who was carrying Cc and Lynn was not too far behind her, the bow child pointed off in a direction.

"The Conductor is stuck in the kid's section!" She yelled not needing to say more as her captain ran off to help. Figuring away in was rather tricky, only to have it present itself.

Once she was in, the Conductor called out to her. "Lassie! Over here!" He was stuck on the dome stained glass. Arms crossed to keep himself warm from the cold. "Ay nae understand what's goin on, but be careful!" He looked at the water as Melody hopped over "don't need yer to get hypothermia!"

The child nodded, she had been careful so far, no need to get worked up now. She held her arm out to the strange bird and carefully carried him off. Once back to the boat, they rowed to safety with the others. In the distance she could see Snatcher and MoonJumper carrying a few others to boats they couldn't reach.

Wait, Snatcher was here!?

Her attention was switched to the boat's loudspeakers, the captain of the ship called out. She and Bonnie realized the captain was still in there!

"Don't wait up for me, pup. Get in a boat and scream." He sadly announced, almost like he wanted this. "This is my dang ship, and I'll go down with it."

No, no! This was her fault, she couldn't let that happen! The Conductor yelled out to her, yelling about something she couldn't hear as she jumped back out to rescue the captain. Everyone called back for her except those who knew she could do it.

However, there was a mental timer and the ship could fully sink at any given moment. She ran like the wind, and launched herself back onto the boat via an ice hat board; she was unsure as to why that was there, but she wasn't complaining. Once aboard, she dodged explosion that could have knocked her off her feet but she kept on.

Past the dinner, into the kitchen that Julia worked so hard to clean, into the laundry room, where the captain sat. She smiled, though the timer still counted down.

* * *

The Conductor worried, looking at his clock. Bonnie paced in place and Lynn did her best not to freeze. In the distance, the mustached girl saw other boats coming there way, Gabriele, Kero and a few Mafia men sat aboard it, MoonJumper and Snatcher floated around to make sure nobody was left behind.

Julia was safe with her son as she stepped off King, shivering like mad. She must have fallen in the water. MoonJumper fretted over her and placed his coat around her. Gabriele looked at her concerned, he wished that he hadn't fallen in as well or that his coat wasn't stitched to his body, Otherwise, the doctor would hand her his as well.

"We have to go, everyone! pull out!" The Conductor yelled, trying to get everyone to a safe distance. The kid was taking to long.

"No! Just a few more minutes!" Bonnie yelled.

"Sorry, lassie, nae can stay." He pointed out "once that boat fully submerges, those waves could hit hard."

Bonnie looked off, saddened by that. However, in the distance, as they rowed away to a safer distance, they could see Melody running as fast as she could with the captain in her hands. Many on the people who saw this cheered her on, calling her over and waving.

Once everyone was gathered and save, the ship sunk, leaving them to row back to shore. The captain sighed, adjusting his hat.

"Pup, why wouldn't you just let me go down with my ship? I can't drown, but at least I could pretend for a bit." He looked at her, tired.

Melody held a somber face, kicking her foot into the ground, Bonnie looked away guilty as well. However, they didn't plan on telling anyone that they had caused the ship to sink.

"We need a captain..." Melody looked up at him, "the seals need their captain..." she pointed out, the little seals that were currently on this lifeboat looked at him, hobbling in place.

He huffed out, looking at everyone. "You're right. Without me, this crew'll never be able to get the lifeboats to shore." He sighed once more, looking off "Fine. Crew, let's go home."

"Thank woo, miss!" A seal called out to Melody, as well as did a few others with Bonnie.

Lynn clapped a hand on Melody's shoulder, giving her a knowing look, though, she wasn't about to throw her first friend under the bus like this. "I'm glad everyone's safe."

"Ey, thank you, lass. The little ones haven't learned ta swim yet!" The Conductor explained, giving her a small smile

Captain muttered under his breath "Hopefully our insurance covers this..." the turned back around to look at the kid "anyways, I can't give out refunds, but it looks like there's something shiny on that iceberg" he pointed, looking up at the blinding light. He then added "funny how our ship crashed right next to it. It's all your, pup."

Melody looked up, then to Bonnie who waved her on. She was exhausted; all she wanted to do was sit down. The hatted child nodded, hopping from boat to boat. A seal had placed it carefully on the last lifeboat for her to get it.

With that, all the Hourglass here were retrieved. At the cost of putting everyone at risk in the process. Let's hope no one finds out who really sunk the ship...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So ends the Arctic chapter, Nex leads to an arc I plan on making on my own. As stated before, the Metro will come last because I do have a few things planned for it, and it's rather lengthy. This next arc I want to try and dedicate it to Julia trying to settle down and probably making a few movies with the directors! I had something planned out like this for a while and I sure hope I can put all my thoughts together! So, expect that for the next few chapters! You'll probably see some returning characters and a new one to boot!


	20. Mail and Blueprints

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mostly a filler and a response Chapter! The next chapter will start a new arc I've been planning out! Also, I'm going to be away for a while. So expect fewer updates for now. Please stay safe everyone!

**(Chapter Twenty: Mail and Blueprints)**

"We have to come up with a blueprint!" Melody yelled out, pacing back and forth.

She was in though while Julia and the other group consisted of Gabriele, Kero, Bonnie, Lynn. MoonJumper sat some ways away, Cooking Cat was making lunch in the kitchen, and Snatcher was up to something in Melody's room.

Currently, Melody was trying to think up how Julia's house in Subcon would look like in its new location. As the child mumbled, Julia held a small knife and carefully cutting the thread that held the doctor's coat to his body.

Occasionally, Gabriele would twitch and stifle a laugh from a poke because of how unsteady Julia was being. "Stop, laughing at me! Your laughter is distracting me." She was having a hard time keeping a straight face. Julia was the kind of person, when relaxed, to catch other people's laughter.

She couldn't help herself when the man was causing her to giggle.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorrE-!" Another poke made him squeak, Julia lost herself as she placed the small knife down.

"Are you two listening to me?" Melody tilted her head, a questioning glance. "Unless you want me to design it myself?" Melody smiled, she could come up with a design for her! It could be a gift for helping her out the first time around!

Julia sat up, calming herself down as she watched Melody run off to her room. With a small grin, the tall girl questioned: "where is she going?" Looking at Gabriele. Only half of his coat was hanging off of him, it was easy to see that he was hearing a not al dark tank top with a high collar.

Fully looking at his arms, you could see burn marks that have long faded his fabric around then. In complete honesty, he had forgotten he had those. However, with endearment, Julia smiled at him about his markings. It makes him look tough.

Bonnie came sliding down the side Julia had never been up before, she was always curious about that area. "Hey, Julia! You got some mail!" The bowed child called out, waving her over.

The tall girl looked at Gabriele, who told her to go on; He needed a small break as well. So, Julia stood up and walked over to the slide. Bonnie had used her ice hat to jump back up, but Julia had to climb on her own. It shouldn't be too difficult for her, she used to go up the slides when she was little!

The girl adjusted her hat and ducked into the yellow slanted cylinder. She remembered how much pressure to put up against the wall to move forward, however she wasn't as small as she used to be. A few bonks of her head, Julia eventually made it up, Bonnie was waiting for her in a whirlwind of paper.

Julia gasped in awe, if all mailrooms were this fascinating, people would start writing letters again. At a desk, she saw a familiar Mafia man she hadn't seen since the Mafia lava incident; had he been traveling with hat kid since Julia left? That must have been a ride.

"Mafia girl! Good to be seeing you again!" The goofy guy said waving at her, the girl smiled and waved back. "You have mail, has been here for four years at most." He pulled it out from an important pile of letters "Mafia has been keeping it safe, wasn't sure if Mafia girl was truly dead or not."

Julia walked up and took the letter from the man, carefully looking it over. It had her name on it in handwriting she didn't recognize any of her friends to have. She opened the letter to finally see what had been waiting for her for so long.

The girl smiled as she kept reading the letter, "So... that's his name."

* * *

The hot desert sun beat down on a train station, empty as it was beside one crow sitting, waiting patiently for another round of the express train. The crow hummed to himself, kicking his legs when a sudden noise of crackling of energy came from the bottom of the steps.

Eyes fixated on the stairs, he watched a strange small being clad in green wearing a hat with a ribbon going through it. It was a nice hat, the crow had to agree with himself.

The small green being looked around, almost searching for something, the turned to look at the crow. "Hello!" The being was rather chirpy for this kind of heat, but the crow nodded back.

The being approached closer, and the crow just tilted his head.

"My name's Sweetie! What's yours?" They asked

The crow hummed for a moment, trying to form words. "Guy."

The little thing seemed to smile, "nice to meet you, Guy! You would happen to know where I am, do you?" The asked again.

Once more, Guy hummed, the only word he could way was "... Desert."

Sweetie was the one who hummed now, a little confused "that's not very helpful... I know it's a desert- oh! Do you have trouble talking?"

The crow nodded.

"Well, that makes sense!" She goes over to sit with Guy, just for a moment and started kicking her little legs around as she waited. "Do you know where I could find some treasures here?"

"Hmm... Fork." Was his reply

Sweetie giggled at him, "Forks are not considered treasure!" However, she watched the crow pull out three forks from his cloak, holding them in his mouth. He just hummed again, looking at her.

"Oh! Do you collect forks? I guess everyone has their treasures then!" She smiled.

* * *

"Here are a few things to make your latter look nice!" Melody placed a few things down on the work table for Julia, paper, pen, a few stickers for decorations though Julia had set them aside. "If you need anything else, just call me!"

And with that, Melody left Julia to her thoughts. Julia looked at the late letter, a smile on her face; Tie. That was the boy's name... only fair to write a letter back, right? If these letters let loose within the mailroom make their actual destination, then Julia has another letter to send after this.

Melody had left her a few other things to make this letter look even more special, wax candles for stamping, A J headstamp to press, some washi tape..? She wasn't quite sure what to do with that. Julia had never written a letter by hand before, never mailed one, so this makes its all the more special. Messy but readable handwriting was starting to be scrawled out.

_Dear Tie,_

_I finally get to know the name behind the boy with the yo-yo. I received your letter, albeit the response is a late as it is; I'm not sure how far our rifts are for the course of time, but by the looks of it, it's been four years since the letter's arrival. I'm not much of an imaginary friend, nor am I a good pen pal it seems._

Julis smiled at her foolery. Having a friend like this when she was younger would have been nice.

_Yeah, for the most part, my beginnings have ended. Though, my new life is still getting started! Despite the troubles along the way, I am happy with it. I'm happy to be here, in this world with my friends I never really had when I was younger. Don't feel sad for me. A happy life is nothing to be sad about._

Julia hummed, leaning back in the small office chair in the mechanical room. She hopes she's not going to make the boy worry about her after this letter, but he spilled his thoughts to her. Maybe she could do the same?

_You know my name already, Julia, I was named after a butterfly in hopes that I'd be able to soar away with grace. Graceful is anything besides me. I did have another name, however; Melody (My Hat Kid) had given me the name of Fedora because of the hat I had worn (still wearing) when she found me, and If I'm correct, there are places that I have been where you haven't yet._

Julia looked back from her letter, it seems Kero and the kids were playing around, laughing and having a good time. It was nice to hear the ambiance of a life that seemed normal. Turning back to the unfinished paper, she wrote out.

_I wish I could answer all your questions, and I wish we could meet in person, where I'm not a phantom from an alternate reality. Here's hoping that one day we could sit together drinking some tea or fruit juice. Just a nice chat, you know?_

However, as Julia looked at her work, she couldn't help but feel this dark pit in her guts. Ever since the cruise accident five days ago, Julia had been more aware of the things that wanted to harm her.

_You and I both seem to have these strange feelings; something forbidding, something that doesn't seems right. I've got a bad feeling that something's coming, and I'm not too entirely sure what. Sorry, that might have been too dark. What I want to say now is: Whatever it could be, I'm not going to let it get me. I'll keep running with a smile on my face, no matter how hard it gets._

Julia once again smiled to herself, this letter was starting to seem a little cheesy, or maybe something else? She might be rambling. The girl shook her head.

_Because I'm not alone, and I know you're not either. You've still got some ways ahead, but at least you got your friends right behind you. I'm not some marvel, I'm not a superhero; Just some girl with abilities that were thrown at her without rhythm or rhyme. But you? I want to believe you're something extraordinary. And it puts a smile on my face._

_Don't be scared, don't worry; keep your friends close, and just keep going._

_Sorry if this letter makes no sense._

_Happily writing to you, Julia._

_Ps: Keep your eyes open, and brace yourself._

She hopes this letter is alright. Now she was rather concerned as she melted the wax and stamped it closed, though it didn't stop Julia from writing Tie's name of the back before looking at it again.

She hummed, the snapped a few pieces of green floral washi tape around the top part to make it stand out. That should do it! Content with it, though still nervous, she walked out of the room.

Taking her time to scuttle up the slide once more, and only bumping her head once this time, she found herself back within the twister created by the fan. Assuming to herself to just let the letter fly, she let it go.

"I hope that reaches you, godspeed," Julia mumbled.

* * *

"Hey, Melody can I see-" Julia had found herself finished assisting Gabriele with his coat and decided to see what Melody had come up with. Though, the child just held herself over the paper.

"No! It's a surprise! No peeking yet!" The hatted child yelled.

"Wh- it's my house though!" Julia called out

"And I'm designing it! So shush!" The smaller girl giggled, looking at the beaten expression on the taller girl's face.

Once Julia left, Melody studied what she had drawn out so far. The house was rather simple by her standards, at least the layout was. Working what was left of the treehouse, Melody considered making a two-story. Not necessarily a two, the upper floor was just an indoor balcony with a latter the went up the entire inside of the tree.

At the too of the first house, there was that boat with the umbrella just resting on a branch, she could turn that into a nice viewing area, but it seems rather dangerous in reality. So, the batted girl designed a smaller viewing deck on the far left of the roof. The electronics in this house were a bit too difficult to figure out, be she know there needed to be a couch somewhere on the left side.

The windows were a whole different story.

Next to the first house, a second one would be right next to it. The first house was designed to be living quarters, for gatherings while the second house that was connected by a rope bridge leading to a sleeping area!

The girl nodded to herself; The sleeping area could have a loft for a bed and under the loft, she could spare a few pillows to make a nice pillow fort for Kero! She noticed just how much the boy loved hers, so it was a nice thought. From and above the loft, there was another ladder that led to a proper balcony, it faced the swamp so that they could look out to it!

So far that was the plan, any essentials would have to be up to Julia. Melody tapped a pen to her cheek in thought. Getting the money for the materials is going to be hard, though she did suggest trying to help the movie director again. Maybe DJ has something new?

Melody smiled to herself, this was the plan; She was going to give the old penguin a call!


	21. Onset once again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slowly getting back into writing, sorry for the, what I think, short chapter but everything will be explained more in the next chapter. Here starts the original arc! I'll be writing it a bit differently than the normal mission way, It'll be scenes as if the movie were a story so that more thought will go into it!

**(Chapter Twenty One: Onset once again)**

Julia smiled to herself, letting one last letter fly off and hoping that it will make its destination somehow. Unlike the last letter, this one was heading onwards with a more emotional topic straight to her cousins. If Julia was able to let them know she was alright for the most part, then, of course, she was going to say something.

Though, she did exclude the parts that were rather... undesirable to read, like getting beat up, almost drowning in frozen waters. That kind of thing. Julia also kept Gabriele and her being together a secret. That was another thing she didn't want to explain to them either.

Once the taller girl slid down the slide, only then did she realize how late it was planetside. Though the night didn't stop Julia from overhearing a quick conversation, well, the end of one. A rift had open up and she couldn't quite see who was leaving.

MoonJumper stood there, a stern face in thought. He was worried about something, but then he noticed his daughter looking at him. "Ah! Julia, have you sent your cousins the letter?"

"Yeah.. but what was that? Are you okay?" Julia approached her father, worry on her face.

"A boy.. with a unique ability wanted to have a chat; He said his name was Tie." He then smiled at her, "He also said, 'thank you for the letter'. I am happy that you're making more friends, my dear." He held Julia's head noticing just how tall she had gotten. He missed those days when she was smaller. However, he's glad Julia had grown up to be a wonderful person despite the endeavors she had faced.

"What!?" Julia smiled happily, holding onto his hand that was perched on her head, "You were able to talk to him!? Call me next time!"

The man laughed softly at her, but then remembered the conversation which got him thinking. "Julia, you'll be alright on your own for a while, yes?" Should he help? Despite that other MoonJumper being responsible for a dilemma that he understood.. it makes him feel responsible. He will always see the monstrous part of him, there no mistake about that. It's something he has learned to acknowledge...

But he's not heartless. At most, he tries not to be anymore.

"Give me your word, you'll be okay while I'm gone." He said to her, and Julia looked at him. She could tell this was something he needed to do.

"I'll be okay." Julia smiled at him. "I'll see you when you get back."

"Of course." He kissed her forehead and vanished. Leaving her to her own space.

* * *

Now that she and Gabriele were together, they had taken temporary stay up at the attic while they and Melody continued to plan out the house in Subcon. A while back, MoonJumper had already taken apart a few things to make it a little easier to build around the broken treehouse for later construction.

As Julia waited for the elevator up, she couldn't help but think... that this was happening. Her place to call home, an actual home with her child, and her boyfriend. A loving family. Maybe also her dad who'll watch her like a hawk from time to time.

She chuckled to herself as the lift had taken her up.

The attic had this odd feeling to her, like the windows that let the sunlight in felt that of a church as if some holy entity was watching over her. Julia couldn't tell if it was a good being or not. The tall girl plopped onto her ramshackle bedding that mostly consisted of pillows from Melody's room. It's no mattress, but at least she could sleep on them.

She had no idea where Gabriele was or Kero, but she did feel the swift kick of the metaphorical sandman hitting her. Julia was out like a light, and her dreams played out like they always did. Darkness. At least, she thought it did. Her world was dim but surprisingly had shape and colors. Colors! Julia couldn't believe it! Her world was a vast field of emerald green grass fills with her favorite flowers of golden marigolds. Even when the world was still a little dark it was breathtaking, she could almost cry.

Things were looking up...

Until the quick flashes that she had witnessed from the Arctic Cruise came back to remind her of its odd meanings. Desert tower, locked box, and a new one; A man with a sun insignia on his clothing.

Julia woke with a start, surprisingly refreshed, and with the knowledge that she slept soundly through the night without realizing it. Though as weird as that might sound, those flashes felt like something or someone was calling out to her this time.

She rubbed her head and took one last look around before she stood up. Gabriele still wasn't here... where was he? Making her way over to the lift she could hear yet another conversation, one that sounded more.. heated.

"I cannot believe you ditched me behind! Maybe I wanted to come along for the mission as well!" A new voice rang out over the large screen on the wall that Bonnie and Melody stood in front of. "Instead, you leave me here with all the paperwork! That you need to do!"

"Hey, what can I say! It's good practice for you since you'll be the new CEO someday, Timmy!" Bonnie just shrugged him off, sticking her tongue out at him.

"It's still _your_ paperwork!" He slammed down on the desk on his side of the video, "Even so, I hate paperwork as much as my grandfather!" As Timmy explained this, his anger towards Bonnie was cut short as he looked over to the side.

Julia was watching the whole half of the conversation as she hopped off the lift, 'so that's Timmy?' She wondered to herself.

"Is that?" The boy with black hair and light blue markings pointed out making the two girls look behind them.

Melody smiled, waving a hand for the taller girl to move over, and as Julia did the boy on the screen, Timmy smiled with amazement. "If you're guessing if this is Julia, then you're right!" Melody smiled.

"And for the record, I wasn't dead!" The taller girl chimed in, right as the boy was about to ask a question that she felt she already had answered a few times over.

Nodding, Timmy held a thoughtful face "Right, right..." then he scratched his neck and tilted his hat up a bit. "It's a pleasure to finally see the face behind the story; Melody spoke very highly of you!" He noticed Julia's bashful expression and added in "you even grabbed the CEO's attention, and he's never interested in many things."

Julia didn't know this herself, but it was a big deal to some extent. "I have so many questions to ask you, but it would see my time is up for now." Timmy looked over at something the group couldn't see, and waved "there's a lot of **paperwork** that needs to be done, thanks to _someone_ sneaking off!" He glared one last time at Bonnie before tipping his hat at Melody and Julia in which Julia tipped back.

Finally, the conversation was over, and Melody looked over to Julia with an excited face. Julia raised a brow at the girl in question and waited for her to start talking as to why she was excited.

"So! Julia!" She started, looking at the tall girl with a splitting grin "I called DJ before I went to sleep last night." She explained to her "and I'm happy to announce that he is looking for some actors for his new movie genre!"

"New movie genre? But he always makes space-related movies..." Julia tilted her head.

"He's... wanting to try and experiment with what he has since a few movies back hadn't... gotten any positives yet." Melody did her best to explain.

"I see... well, what kind of genre then?" Julia asked as she got ready to head down, Bonnie and Melody followed her.

"Sci-fi/Horror." Was what the hatted girl said.

* * *

It had been so long since Julia had set foot in the studio, she was half expecting the two directors throwing words like the first time she and Melody came here. It seemed like a lifetime ago now. Though, this time they weren't looking for Timepieces that would cause an uproar.

before they even started walking Juli wanted to know why the kid wanted to help so much with her money situation "So, are you doing this to help me, or do you just want to be in a movie again?" Julia asked, looking down at the child right before they approached the front desk.

the child thought for a while but not too long "Hmm, a little of both." Melody swayed her hand side to side as she smiled at her.

Once at the desk, the bird immediately recognized the hatted child, she hadn't changed a bit. However, the taller girl was what got him confused for a moment before the desk bird remembered the familiar Fedora atop her head and nearly choked on the warm drink he was drinking.

Julia smiled at him and waved, "Good to see you too!" And leaned on the desk "We're here to see Grooves, got news saying he was making a new movie?"

The front desk bird was trying to recover from the shock but just pointed for them to carry on. The three girls heard him smack his chest to remove the liquid that might have gone down the wrong way. Julia smiled to herself, seeing people's reactions never get old, and never does walking down the halls of Dead Bird Studios. Despite Julia having history here within the walls.

The nostalgia was hitting her as each light cast their shadow which way and that, the echoing of their steps throughout the building and then finally the different sets with busy birds walking and getting ready for movie shooting. You could already hear the Conductor working on his side, while the DJ penguin himself was gathering his stuff to the larger set on the moon.

Turning around he noticed Melody, the new girl Bonnie, who he hadn't been introduced to yet, and a sight for sore eyes, Julia. He had heard from the Conductor that his older diva was alive and well, it was another thing to finally see her in person again. She looks roughed up as usual, but he was happy to see Julia was okay.

"Darling, darling! Come and hug this old penguin already!" He sashayed over with open flippers, as Julia couldn't help but smile at him. The two smaller girls smiled as they watched the two older adults attempt to embrace due to size differences, then shortly after, the DJ gave Melody a 'welcome back' hug as well. "My Divas are back and ready for action! and what's this? A new friend I see? My, my! Aren't you just the cutest!"

Bonnie was taken aback by the sudden compliment, she bashfully smiled as she rubbed her neck.

Julia chuckled at Bonnie's reaction, it was also nice to see that DJ Grooves hasn't changed a bit. The taller girl leaned her head to the side "Grooves, are you making a Horror based movie? Because if so, you're going to make my day."

The DJ chuckled "Indeed I am darling, I was thinking I could shake things up a bit!" He turned to look at her "Never know, new things can bring a crowd. Come, come! Meet some of the new actors I've hired!"

Before the DJ walked away to gather some more equipment, the three girls were led into a waiting room where a few other actors sat around. Most of them were Penguins, a few Owls, this was obvious; they weren't expecting to see two people out of everyone they could have thought of, however.

"Hey, Dolly! Long time no see!" The voice echoed around and Julia groaned out in frustration. It was Doppler, the shapeshifter.

"What in the magical _hellhole_ are you doing here?" Julia slipped a curse out, she didn't like this thing.

"See ya still have a temper." The multiple voices chuckled out "As to what I'm doin here, I work here. Full time!" The beings' eyes all smugly smiled at her, making Julia glare at them "I get to eat any old prop and turn myself into a fresh new one! I can even transform into a body double for some serious shoots!"

"You're a stunt double?" Julia folded her arms, questioning them "and your not killing people?"

"Nope! This gig is way more fun, Dolly!" Coming from a person who likes to mess with people, that says a lot, or probably very little.

"Uh.. you know this.. rabbit person?" Melody couldn't take her eyes off the Doppelgänger.

"Do I know them? They tried to body snatch me while back!" Julia growled out, sure she was happy to know that Doppler wasn't on the train anymore more, but she certainly wasn't expecting this. Nor did she think about working with this being. Julia hopes that this change of heart is not some sort of trick, she could already feel that rage she was keeping down creeping back up just looking at him.

Melody and Bonnie were slightly on guard after what Julia said, but Doppler raised his odd limbs in a way to say 'cool down' "promise I ain't here to cause harm, I'm serious about this. I'm actually enjoyin myself for once." He then pointed the far chair, "ask him if you don't believe me."

In the back, the soft pattering of legs kicking could be heard, quietly waiting to be noticed was a familiar crow.

Who wasn't supposed to be here but snuck in looking for forks? Somehow, Guy was mistaken for a normal crow actor and was given the position of a background character. He smiled up at Julia when she noticed him.

"Ah! You're alive!" Julia smiled, hurrying over to him as Guy stood up humming at her happily. It was the first time Guy with many Forks was happy to embrace someone.

* * *

After all the actors were introduced to one another, they all got familiar with the new set that was located on the moon. It was a large prop made spaceship that one would see in a normal sci-fi film. Large and oddly shaped. The movie, as Julia had confirmed was a Sci-fi/Horror, and the name was called _'Body Swapper from the Stars'_. The lead monster role was of course Doppler.

DJ Grooves hadn't given out all the info as of yet, but tomorrow was going to give out all the information they needed. Then after that, they'll shoot the first scene of the movie. Julia, Melody, and Bonnie were still unclear what their role was going to be but they hopped it was good.

Being on the moon again was strange, just as it was the first time as Julia explored the large fake spaceship. Looking out at the stars, she seemed to faze in and out of mental reality as she thought about a few things as per usual. If MoonJumper was okay, how her pal Tie was doing, how this new movie will go. And about the visions.

She thought that box in her mind looked familiar, and now that she looked back at it, it seemed to be the same one Zephyr was locked in. Was he the one calling her? It couldn't be possible though, because the man was out cold, he couldn't put himself back together, let alone make a noise.

So what was it's deal? And who was the man with the sun symbol on their cloak?

"Spacin out, Dolly? Be careful doin that around me, old habits die hard and all that." The voices brought her back from her mind as she turned around fast.

"I wasn't spacing out, and if I didn't hate you, I'd laughed at the pun." She pointed out, giving Doppler a look.

"You can never catch a break it seems, well, if you plan on being here... keep your mind down to earth!" He noted, walking away.

"The earth? Why can't my mind be over the moon?" She called back in response, getting a distent laugh out from being. that's another person who likes bad jokes, to be shes hates him. Julia should at the most attempt to cooperate for now... she saw how DJ was excited to start this new idea of his and she doesn't want to upset him with one of her outbursts. Honestly, having an outburst near people seems like a dangerous thing, and she'll have to get ahold of herself.

"Keep it together, Julia..." She whispered to herself. "Keep it together."

God. This was going to be a very strange experience. She hopes this doesn't involve any harm to anyone. If anything she chose to remember about the studio, it was that these movie shoots _never_ ended up dull.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus, the start of something new.


	22. Casts, Roles, and Ghosts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I remember saying in the last chapter that things will be explained more, but I lied to myself and everyone. (I've been getting increasingly slower though) However, I now know for a fact things will pick up in the next chapter now that I have discussed a few roles that the characters will be having. Also, a new character is being introduced as well. Though minor as they may be. This upcoming character will not be the main focus as of yet, but soon.

**(Chapter Twenty Two: Casts, Roles, and Ghosts)**

Waking up early was mandatory for the days onward. Julia sat in the kitchen on Melody's ship drinking tea, as usual, talking with Gabriele as she waits for Melody and Bonnie.

"That doppelgänger is there? Honestly?" He asked, folding his hands and leaning back against the chair. "And you're sure they're not up to something?"

"No, I'm not sure. That's what worries me." The girl looked at her drink, just another thing to the pile to worry about. "But if Grooves doesn't see a problem with them, then I shouldn't worry too much. I just need to keep my eyes open."

Gabriele nodded, "you could never be too careful in situations like these..." the doctor noticed Julia's grip on her cup was tight, and by how she looked off into it, he could tell she was stressing about the whole situation. "Julia, my darling. If you ever feel any strong emotions... don't bottle it up. It isn't good."

While the stuffed man held out his hand for her, the girl reached back with a nod. While a moment of silence came, Julia took another sip of her warm drink to calm her down. It was also odd not seeing Cooking Cat here, It was obvious she has Lynn to look after now. Taking a glance at the empty spot to where the feline always stationed herself, Julia then looked to her boyfriend. Something seemed off and she couldn't tell what...

Upon realizing, Gabriele was equipped with an object, though not just any object. It was a badge! Pinned just above where his heart would be. A green cross badge, with a golden outline and small background sparkles.

Gabriele caught Julia looking at his new belonging, and chuckled "Ah, yes... you're probably wondering where I was yesterday." He looked at his badge now "I was having a chat with Benjamin, when he suddenly gave me this object. If I recall, they were called badges..."

"The same kind of badges that grant specific abilities..." Julia trailed off looking at it "Melody has bought a few of those. They all seemed made specifically for her."

"Yes, except this one works with me." He pointed out, holding a hand to her. "With this badge, I'm granted the ability to heal minor wounds, such as scraping or the beginning of burns and bruises." There was a golden green glow coming from his palm, looked like gas from dried ice as a few specks flowed down and disappeared. "However, I cannot heal major wounds such as a stabbing or very deep gashes. Or broken bones."

One last thing then came to mind "there is also a time limit to when I can treat wounds..." he held Julia's hand once more "I cannot heal old burns or scars..."

It made sense, while heath pons was stronger for certain things, he was now a minor healing station if needed. Julia smiled that he was given such an ability. Being able to do something besides taking off his frilly tie and causing his miasma ability to activate must make him happy.

Meanwhile, Melody walked out of her room and to the kitchen proud, with a few extra equipments Julia also hadn't seen her wear before. One is a large bow that held her hair together. Bonnie and Her Captain smiled and giggled quickly joking about being bow siblings, But Julia just smiled at the two. Of course, she was slightly confused, but it was about time to head off to the studio to meet up with Grooves and the other actors.

Julia stood up, the two adults embracing each other in goodbye for the day. "If you need anything at all, just give me a call, my dear," Gabriele said to Julia, who nodded with a smile. The doctor then watched as the children along with his girlfriend walked out from the kitchen and out of sight.

* * *

The DJ penguin had handed out a few scripts, every person sat somewhere within the studio to read and focus. Some sat with one another if their roles were in groups that interacted with each other, and some, like Julia, had been given a single role. Wondering off, she left the group of people to silently read, she was able to think better without noise to distract her.

While Julia wandered off, she overheard a scene that Melody and Bonnie had; A space traveler and their companion arrive in a spaceship that is disguised as a... briefcase?

"Huh... that idea sounds familiar.." The girl mumbled to herself, remembering a certain space traveler who rode in a blue police box.

"Hey... have you heard of the recent incident that happened down in the storage area?" Two owls passed by, one whispering to their friend as Julia read a part of her script, "I had heard the studio was h-haunted now, but I didn't believe it."

"Poor Nico didn't stand a chance against a falling prop box... hope he gets better soon." The other owl whispered back.

'Haunted?' Julia thought to herself, 'When was the studio haunted?' Adjusting her hat, she decided to read and walk, possibly down to the old storage of the studio. That was a place she never thought she'd see again. Julia entered the elevator and kept her eyes glued to the folded papers in her hands.

"The engineer was spotted by important equipment, tightening a loose bolt apart of what kept the ship powered.." She quietly read out loud, "So, I'm the engineer?" Funny how she couldn't even keep her bike properly up to speed. She'll need to see a mechanic soon now that she thinks about it.

As the elevator slowly made its descent, It shook violently for a moment. The tall girl paid no mind to it, thinking that it was probably turbulence. However, it happened once more... except the elevator shook harder, just like the time realities collided during her ride back to this world. Except she wasn't on a bike she could control, the elevator fell fast through what looked like a different version of the alpine skyline; more specifically, the area within the birdhouse!

As the elevator fell a few feet, Julia could hear her screaming echoing out to the clouds. Just before the elevator fell through the second rift, she made eye contact with a startled boy wearing a cowboy hat. As fast as the event happened she found herself at the storage floor, nearly throwing herself out of the metal moving box once the doors opened.

Heaving heavily, Julia tightly gripped onto the script and herself. When she's prepared to fall from a height, it's not so bad. However, this? This started up something she thought she was over with. Then again anyone would scream in an elevator fall.

"I hate elevators. I hate them. Hate." Julia shakily stood up mumbling, adjusted herself, and attempted to move on.

* * *

Melody and Bonnie were excited for this movie that they paid attention to what was written down. It was so much more different them filming live like what the hatted girl and her older sister had done! There was a plot, a story with action, planning. Scenes she couldn't wait to experience, even if they sounded scary!

While the children kept their faces to the scripts, the odd mismatched being strode passed them while the two sat in a lounge-like area reading out a few lines every now again.

Backpedaling, Doppler looked at them with a smile "Oh, if it ain't Dolly's crew. What is it? She's accumulatin a pint-size army or somethin?" The being chucked and Melody frowned at the shapeshifter.

The anomaly of a person looked imposing, but neither of the children was scared of it. Melody had fought Snatcher, and even then he wasn't too scary. "First of all, you don't scare us." The hatted girl pointed out, holding her ground "and second, Julia told us about what you do. Don't you dare try anything that will hurt Grooves or anyone else here."

"Well, such aggression! Look here, Kiddos..." the shapeshifter crouched down, all eyes looking a Melody "I'm not the one you need to be scared of. If anythin, it's Dolly."

"What... what do you mean...?" Melody stammered, glancing at Bonnie of some sort of backup.

"Oh? She didn't tell ya that part? Where she almost smashed me into a pancake without a second thought?" The shapeshifter tilted their head, laughing. "Man, did she tell you anythin about her powers?"

"Of course not! She didn't have to.." Melody remembered the first time Julia had made a barrier, it was against Zephyr to protect Kero "she's got abilities that are unique... and she's doing her best..."

"Well..." Bonnie scratched her head "I'm not going to lie, when we first met, she chased me down with her bike driving on said barriers." She looked over to her captain, "It was.. it was pretty scary at the time."

"That was because you jumped on her head, though..." Melody pointed out.

Doppler watched the children banter about, and decided to make a point "Look, she got mad, right? What I'm tryin ta say is that... Dolly's power sometimes gets out of hand with her anger. Keep an eye out and watch." They pointed out.

What was the shapeshifter trying to prove?

* * *

"Gotta hand it to Grooves; When he wants to improve..." Julia looked on at the script, a bit of awe on her eyes "he knows how." Though some parts bothered her along with the script, she'll just have to see how things play out.

In the dark corners of the large storage, just as dark as Julia remembered, she could hear giggling. The noise made her freeze since the room was so big the sound echoed off everything making it hard to pinpoint where it came from. Then singing started, softly bouncing off the walls as Julia kept moving.

"Buttons, Buttons, so very round and colorful..-"

She kept moving, the voice she was trying to follow sounded like it belonged to a child. What were they doing here?

"Buttons, Buttons! In every shape and size!"

Laughter and giggling started and quickly stopped when Julia thought she had made it to the source of the sound. It was eerily quiet, and it sent a shiver down the girl's spine.

"Hello?" Julia called out, looking around "you lost down here, kid?" Without a doubt, Julia knew it sounded like a kid. Unless it was a demonic presence hiding as a child.

Shuffling was heard overhead, above the large storage shelf that held props inboxes. Reacting fast, Julia held up her barrier and watched as the many boxes broke from the impact. The shield holding strong.

"Uh oh-!" Julia heard and saw a spectral tail attempting to get out of sight.

However, the tall girl wasn't about to let that sneak attack go. Julia shot out a single string from her index finger, snagging it and prevented the ghostly being from retreating. If there was anything her strings were strong against, it was small souls without shells.

"Hey! Let go!" The child cried out in panic.

With a firm look, Julia yanked the ghost out from the shelf, looking at what seemed to be a very small dweller. It looked so frail, and skinny, but clearly, it could withhold the force Julia had just applied. Though, not only did she have the shock of seeing a Dweller down here but the fact she could understand it without a binding contract like for Kero.

"First, you need to tell me what you're doing here." Julia looked at the ghost sternly, making the child curl up.

"What am I doing here? I live here!" The child softly yelled at Julia, then stopped to process something "You.. you can understand me..?"

"It would seem so... not sure why, myself." Julia shrugged, keeping a strong hold still.

"Huh, only the dead can talk to the dead.. and living people if they're strong enough.." the child stopped struggling around and got in Julia's face "are you dead too?"

"Last time a checked, no-" Julia eyed the ghost

"So you're actually alive! That's amazing!" The child looks on with awe.

Julia then let go of the ghost, it seemed more interested in talking with her now that she grabbed its attention. "How long have you been down here..?" The girl was curious.

"Awhile... I think." The ghost was unsure, looking around "I've been down here for as long as I can remember, and it's not much."

The ghost has memory loss, that was something Julia could relate to, but it was only natural for the dead to forget some things.

"Do you remember your name..?" Julia asked, taking off her hat and dusting it off.

"I only remember... Button." Was the child's answer "I remembered that because I collected buttons! Still do!" She giggled.

"Well, Button, it's nice to meet you." Julia placed her hat back on her head and looked up at her "My name is Julia."

A conversation had broken out between the two, Julia had found a spot to sit on a dolly with small boxes on it. They played a game where they each had to answered questions, at least to the best of they're capabilities. One question down the line was asked about why Button wad attacking some of the staff when they came down here...

The child's answer was unexpected, "It's because they let that monster eat my friends! The white shiny people that never talk or move..!"

"Manikins?" Julia raised a brow, asking.

It turned out that Button's only friends where a few manikins that sat around collecting dust. When Doppler came by eating said 'friends' probably for being able to move and pose for clothing designers.

It then occurred to Julia that this child never had any real friends. Button has been alone down in the depths of Dead Bird Studios. The lonely child side of the older girl wanted to reach out to this dweller the more she thought about it. Button was just like her.

"Well, if a friend you want, I'll be one..." Julia said looking at the masked dweller, now taking in the design she had on her mask.

It was a navy blue with thick white lines going over each eye hole. Little carved wings on the top half of her mask, and at the very top where three angled spikes. The middle one much bigger than the two sides. To finish off the mask there seem to be light pink circles, like the blush on an old ceramic doll.

"Really!?" The child was ecstatic, flipping which way and that. Stopped to look at Julia's dozed of expression. The Dweller tilted its mask in question.

Then, Julia realized just how long she stayed down here. The others were probably looking for her, it was probably time to go home. Looking over at the Dweller, Julia sighed. "I promise I'll be back, Just.. please try not to hurt anyone while I'm gone okay?"

Button nodded happily, disappearing into the depths of the storage room.

Wondering her way back, Julia found herself staring at the elevator once more. Glaring at the metal death box. No, just to play it safe, "where the hell is the stairs." She muttered to herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As some of my fans know from Tumblr, I've been having an artist block and a depression rut... It's been increasingly hard to write and draw, but I managed with this chapter. I apologize if it isn't the best, I feel like it's lack as well. However, I'm going to try my best at the next one, I've been wait so long to write it out...
> 
> See you guys in the next chapter.


	23. Horror amongst the Stars: Part one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's going to be a few parts after this chapter, though I'm not sure just how many. An estimate of at least two or three parts in total but only time will tell! We're getting to some of the written horror stories in pieces and I originally thought it was going to be cooler than first planned, however, I'm not sure if it's stupid or some might enjoy it.
> 
> Either way, I'm finally getting back into the swing of things, and I'm feeling much better than before! I'll also be cramming in things that were meant to be in this arc as well; not just the movie.
> 
> I also apologize if this chapter seemed short though, gotta start somewhere right?

**(Chapter Twenty Three: Horror amongst the Stars: Part one)**

Julia mumbled in her sleep, turning in the pillow pile that made up her bed in the attic. Turning fully to the side, she had naturally woken up, no dreams, no nightmares. Just the pleasure of seeing Gabriele making a pose everyone, back in her time period, makes jokes about.

"Hello there." He said, almost in the same tone as a certain Jedi. Almost.

Still, pretty much asleep, Julia turned on her back, arm propped on her eyes with a drowsy smile; She started chuckling. "How long have you been waiting in that pose?"

"Hmm. Maybe an hour." The doctor said, glancing out the window that forever seemed like the day "I've lost track, it's hard to tell sometimes."

Turning back over to him, she kept smiling, but still wanting to sleep. In her half-dazed state, Julia heard him chuckle as well, "I adore you..." as he cupped the side of her head for a moment and brushed back a few strands of hair. Then the two held onto each other in an embrace, his larger body dwarfing hers by comparison.

Shortly after, a small figure makes their way in between the two adults, wanting to be smushed by love as well. Gabriele softly laughed at Kero, the happy face the child was making was so bright. The family relaxed like this a little while longer, but before Julia knew it, she was awoken once more.

Gabriele knew she needed to get going, as much as he'd want to stay like this, maybe when they finally have a place of their own. Maybe then they can embrace for the longest time and not worry about anything anymore.

Julia slowly made her way up and out of the pile, "Hey, you two.." Julia rubbed the sleep out of her face and turned to them. "Wanna come along today?" She asked, grabbing her vest and her signature hat. Then readjusted the eye patch over her glowing eye.

Kero excitedly hopped around his mother, of course, he'd want to go; the child clung onto her leg in waiting as Julia looked over to Gabriele.

It took him a while, but eventually agreed to at least see what this movie studio was about. He had never seen one, it'd be an experience.

* * *

As the group walked into the large building, Julia had taken notice of Melody and Bonnie's sudden and quick glance at her now and then. They didn't look noticeably tense but something did seem strange. The morning was relatively quiet and calm, which was completely off the normal mornings Julia was so used to having.

Gabriele noticed as well, however, nobody did anything or even asked about it. In all honesty, it would be better to not have any unnecessary drama this early in the morning.

In the meantime, Kero spun around in wonder, looking up at the high ceiling and big bright lights. Sure, the spaceship would be the most amazing thing to him, but this place he was in right now, was becoming a close second. The only thing this place had that the ship didn't was the mystery behind everything. The large rooms blocked off or used as temporary storage made the boy want to dig around and find things he'd never seen before. Which were many.

"Kero!" Julia called out to the boy, she didn't want him to wander off too far and get lost. She watched as the sack child stumbled back to her side. "We have some time before we start practicing scenes together-" Julia smiled, looking down at him "wanna meet a new friend?"

"Another friend? Have they tried to kill you yet?" Gabriele dryly joked

"Kinda, but it was more of self-preservation than being greedy, though." Julia pointed out.

Julia leads them down a few halls, stairwells; the same route she had taken before. She wasn't about to take another death fall in the elevator. She promised to never set foot in another metal box for as long as she lives.

Julia quietly hopes she's not developing claustrophobia or cleithrophobia. Either would be terrible with her ability to build barriers.

While the group walked, a quiet figure followed them. The trio was unaware, the distance was rather great and unable to detect any kind of aura. The figure kept to the shadows, not wanting to confront them yet, but softly growled in annoyance.

Once Julia and her group were close to their destination, Julia started to explain the situation "Alright, so this new friend of mine is a dweller-"

"Like how I was!?" Kero excitedly yelled but was shushed by his mother with a smile

"Yes, just like how you were, but she's super small... and not from Subcon." Julia whispered, then looked to Gabriele "In fact, I have a suspicion that this dweller died here. She didn't just wander in and stayed. She's just a child."

Gabriele hummed in acknowledgment, keeping this information in mind. A possible outcome was the child did not even know that time had passed, trapped within the thick concrete walls.

"I promised her that I'd be back, but I'm afraid of leaving her alone while I'm with the others..." Julia looked at her boyfriend with a pleading eye "think you guys could be her friends too? Keep her company while I'm away?"

"Yeah!" Kero happily raised a hand, already wanting to meet this new dweller.

Gabriele sighed, but Julia could tell he was smiling, "already fretting over this being, are we?" He playfully jabbed at her as he folded his arms.

Julia sheepishly looked away, scratching the back of her head "she just... she reminds me of my childhood. Didn't have too many friends."

The man softened his posture. He could see why she was like this now, even though this child had long since passed, Julia was still worried about them being alone. The echoes of this ghost were still here, still feeling, playing around like they never died.

But even then, one would notice how lonely it would be.

"Alright, we'll do what we can." Gabriele walked up to Julia and hugged her, "besides, your son seems eager to make a new friend." The two walked beside each other as Julia smiled, watching Kero attempting to not run off and find the dweller out of excitement.

To Julia's surprise, Button was in the same spot as before, looking off into a direction. She seemed spaced out, or was it being alert? Whatever it was, the adults had no time to ponder on the situation. The dweller child turned to the group, stunned, but then excitedly charged at the fedora-wearing human.

Button was fast, it seemed odd now that Julia focused on it. Everyone watched Button zipping around, and Kero joyfully laughed at her.

"My, Isn't she just a ball of energy? Here I thought Kero was fast.." Gabriele mumbled to Julia and watched the small dweller immediately turn to the other child. It looked like they were already playing a game of tag. It was rather adorable, despite how fast Button moves.

She would bop Kero on the head with her mask when the frog child managed to tag her back.

"I wasn't expecting this kind of reaction..." Julia mused, scratching the side of her head, and Gabriele just hummed.

* * *

_The dark corridors of the stark white spaceship clanked with every footstep, the guards, along with the captain, attempted to navigate through with dim-lit lights from the backup generator aboard said ship. What could have happened to their vessel? The eerie cranking of bolts put everyone on edge as they followed the sound straight to-!_

_The sliding door opened in a flash, all armed guards pulled their weapons, pointed as the light finally fixated on alone form standing with their back turned. The person they all turned to swiftly turned around with a jump, not expecting a squad of guards and the captain to be aiming at her._

_"What in damn hell!" The engineer cried out holding a wrench in defense._

The scene could have continued if it weren't for the fact a few cast members started snickering at Julia, who had the role of a character with a western accent. It wasn't that she was bad, it was the fact that she was good and no one was expecting such a voice from her.

With how she dresses, a few members thought she'd have the kind of accent Doppler would have, but this was far greater.

"What? My aunt had this kind of accent, it was easy to pick it up from her!" Julia started to smile, a few other cast members start losing it as she kept talking. "Now look here," she pointed at one of the 'guards' who had less control but ultimately lost herself in her laughter because of them.

One for the blooper reel.

"Alright, alright, let's take a break here darlings." The 'captain' who was none other then Grooves, waved at everyone. They had been practicing for some time now, live acting from the prop ship on the moon to get another feel for the roles they'd all be doing.

The old penguin had a good feeling about this, about everything.

During the break, everyone went their own little way, gathering in groups to chat and think; Julia made her way over to a corner and tied her hair back up. Once everything was in order again, the tall girl sighed. It will no doubt take at least a month to get everything under wraps, maybe even longer, she's never really been in what looked like proper movie production so she was unsure about the actual time frame.

All the other recordings seemed like missions, to her and Melody they technically were. There was no timepiece in this... This one had more of a story to it. In truth, there were other things Julia wanted to find out about currently.

Once again, her thoughts distract her. Though, she wasn't caught off guard like the many time before. This time she saw Doppler come towards her, they never seem to just leave her alone! Julia tensed up, but didn't move, she showed signs that if they did anything, the tall girl would gladly attack him.

"Nice actin, Dolly." The doppelgänger folded their odd hands "seem like ya do have some talent."

"Go away, please." Julia deadpanned, "I don't feel like putting up with you right now."

"When do you ever?" Doppler asked.

"Good point." Julia started to walk away to avoid verbal conflict, but she felt the being reach out and within that moment Julia flicked a single string at them violently to prevent contact.

The woman glared at the doppelgänger, watching as they hissed and held their hand to their chest. Everything happened so fast no one knew what had happened. Everyone in the room just thought the doppelgänger was being wired... like normal.

"That wasn't very nice Doll," Doppler whispered at her.

"Attempting to touch people without permission isn't as well." Was all Julia said, finally able to make a retreat.

* * *

After a few more hours of practicing, it was finally the time everyone went home.

Julia found herself just about to walk into Dead Bird Studios when Melody had stopped her. "Hey, Julia...?" The girl grabbed the taller one's sleeve. "Are you alright? Like... emotionally?"

"Yeah...?" Julia looked at her confused, where did this come from all of a sudden? "Why? Was I acting differently? You know- besides the actual acting?"

"We're just... cautious is all." Bow said, looking at Julia "we've been noticing how tense you get around Doppler when you guys were on set..."

"We're just worried something might... happen." Melody finished saying.

"Well, if it's Doppler, more then just something will happen." Julia explained, crouching down at the two "I don't trust them. Not one bit."

"You don't think they'll try anything in a crowd, do you?" The hatted girl shied away from her.

It took a moment to realize that Melody was starting to become uncomfortable around her, Julia stood and adjusted herself and looked away. "Knowing them, they probably will. If Doppler said anything to you... don't listen." The taller girl looked back down at the child. "He's just messing with you. Despite not having a mouth, all he can do is talk."

The two children looked at each other, both had thoughts but eventually nodded towards Julia slowly. What did that being say to make them act like this?

That sensation to hit something came back, but Julia shook her head as she wondered off to got pick up Gabriele and Kero. Her head throbbed with pain as she walked.

* * *

Kero sat down and watched Botton continue to zip around. This place was still so huge and she had many things she wanted to show him. To old posters, to life-size props, this was the dweller's whole world. Just like how the swamp was Kero's whole world before he met Julia.

It wasn't long after Gabriele attempted to teach the small dweller that there wasn't, in fact, a black void outside the building. Or the large storage room for that matter. It was hard finding a globe or a map that wasn't for a movie and pointed out various locations.

"We are about... here!" Gabriele pointed near the middle of the desert. "And Subcon is way over there." His finger when in a line to what looked like an intact kingdom of Subcon.

This map was old.

"That's where I'm from!" Kero chirped with a smile.

The small dweller looked at the map in wonder, as Julia finally made her way to the group. Everyone looked up at her and Kero shoot off towards his mother, happy to see her.

Button looked up at the group of three that gathered together, she had a family once. What happened to them? The child wasn't sad, she was more inquisitive than anything. Why couldn't she remember how she got here? How did she die?

"Hey, Button... We're heading out now." Julia quietly shook her out of her thoughtful stupor "Me, Kero and Gabriele will be back tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay." Button quietly said, nodding her mask "bye-bye!"

Julia smiled at her, everyone was waving their fair wells and once the tall girl and her family were gone, Button continued to stare off at the map still spread out before her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember the last chapter when I said Button wasn't an important character yet? My brain might have accidentally made her a key in this part of the arc as well. Oops...


	24. Horror amongst the Stars: Part two

**(Chapter Twenty Four: Horror amongst the Stars: Part two)**

_The space traveler and their companion arrived at the large spaceship, void and empty; the power flickering and sparking. The two seemingly young explorers of space looked around questioning as to why a ship of this caliber was unmanned._

_"Be on guard, something happened here..." The one with the scarf said, chills running through her spine as they two looked upon a wall that had multiple laser holes._

The two girls continued with the scene, however as they walked, Bonnie tripped over a prop. Melody couldn't help but giggle at the panicking noise her friend had made "are you okay?" Melody helped her up.

"Yup, yeah- totally meant to do that," The bow girl said, brushing herself off.

It had been at least a week since when they first started. Things were surprisingly going well, so Grooves decided to record the first few shots of the movie that went off without a hitch.

"You're both doing great darlings." Grooves said behind the scenes, encouraging them.

The two girls smiled and continued with the recording. Grooves and Julia watched sitting in chairs waiting for their roles to come up, the older girl messed with her untied hair because it felt strange keeping it untied for so long. Since it was rather hard to hide her charms while wearing her costume, Julia had to place them in storage for the meantime while she worked.

"Nervous, darling?" The old penguin looked back at her, tilting his sunglasses and showing his beady eyes.

Julia chuckled, looking at him with an unsure smile "Never gone this long without having my charms. Guess I am a little nervous I might hurt someone."

"So, that magic stuff stuck around, huh?" He asked, remembering the final fight with Mustache girl. "Thought that might have been a side effect of the timepieces."

Julia shook her head, "No, I think this goes deeper than any timepiece." She held a hand to her heart, feeling something within, "Though... I have a feeling it might have accelerated my abilities by accident..." The taller girl thought about it for a moment, then placed a hand to her eye patch. Was she only able to do the things she can now because of them? Would things have developed slower if she never came to this world?

What happens if her abilities get way out of her control..?

Julia wasn't going to lie to herself, it did scare her.

"Everything will be fine, darling." Grooves calmly said, placing a flipper on Julia's arm with reassurance.

All Julia could do was nod.

* * *

_The two girls carried on, during their exploration of the ship they had found a guard incapable of talking. The only humming was his way of communication. It was a little eerie with the given situation, especially when half of the spaceship's power was currently offline._

_The guard was shaken as they walked, something was on board with them. No human or bird was able to make this much damage in a singular area. Silence, there was nothing but silence as red warning lights flashed with every step they took. Distance skittering from an unknown location echoed throughout the hall._

_The group was unaware of the dangers just lurking above them, in between the walls. Hunting._

_The three had reached what seemed to be a base of operations, a temporary haven, before the unknown assailant that has been wrecking the ship shows up to claim their lives._

_That, or until the oxygen reserves finally fail._

_Just as the two smaller figures were about to knock on the security door, large spider-like arms quietly sprung out of the ceiling, snatching up the guard behind them as the poor bird tried to call out to the smaller travelers._

_His cries for help go unnoticed._

* * *

Before anyone knew it, the second week went by. Some of the actors were due their days off, and Julia took this time to calm herself down in Subcon. Of course, now she was worrying about Button being alone. Though thankfully even when the tall girl was off work, Gabriele agreed to check in on the small dweller.

Kero won't be joining this time however, it was his turn again to patrol the swamps. Julia believes he just misses the humid atmosphere.

Now that Julia felt like she had a somewhat leveled head, Thanks to not being near Doppler, she can think in peace and figure some things out. The first thing on her checklist was the flashes she had been having. What was this about a desert, tower, most importantly Zephyr's box prison.

As much as she'd hate to go anywhere near that chest, maybe... maybe she could find some answers around it?

Julia looked around, making sure no one was following her. No minions, no dwellers, not Snatcher either. He must be with Melody and Bonnie. It did seem a little odd that he was deliberately spending time with the girls. She'll have to ask about that later if she remembers, but one problem at a time.

Adjusting her hat, Julia walked forward, stopping for a second to admire the location of where she'd soon have her house... then to what would be her back yard. The shed located there was currently housing the box that the mad jester was in.

MoonJumper thought his daughter wasn't watching him, but boy did she fool him. Curiosity always gets the better of her. Even now.

The shed still needed to be fixed, but it was safe enough to just sit and think.

Standing in the doorframe, she looked at the dreary state of the room. Dusty and dark as expected, but the box sat there untouched by anything. Slowly walking towards the heavily locked chest, Julia stared at it. Looking to see what kind of answers she could get from it.

However it was just a magical box meant for holding, there was nothing else to it. No matter how long she looked at it, it did nothing.

Her on the other hand?

Julia's vision started to unfocus, and she noticed this. Putting a hand to her head she swayed on her feet, desperately trying to hold herself up. The room spun around as Julia inevitably fell to the ground.

No one was around to hear her thud, passed out peacefully in the old shed.

* * *

"Button?" Gabriele strolled his way around the maze of boxes and lights, he had been calling out to the dweller child for ten minutes now "dear child, where have you gone?"

Something didn't seem right, it was way too quiet. No giggling, nothing zipping around corners. There was urgency in the doctor's strides now, had something happened?

"GO AWAY!"

A loud voice echoed throughout half of the movie storage, lights flickering, and eventually shattering from an intense electrical anomaly. Leaving the doctor in half-darkness, Gabriele huffed to himself and started running in the direction of where this could have started.

What worried him was that it wasn't directed at him, but at something else.

* * *

Julia eventually started moving again, however not in the shed she was just recently in. The girl had woken up to the bright blinding sun, a small breeze every now again, and sand.

A large expanse of sand.

She was in a desert.

"Finally! You've answered my call!"

Julia turned around and the moment she saw a light yellow hair, the girl screamed. Not in a damsel in distress way... more like... a war cry.

The familiar man in robes screamed in fear as Julia charged at him. With a snap of his fingers, the man vanished. Leaving Julia to scream out in frustration.

"Zephyr! You asshole! Fight me like the man you are!" She kicked the sand up, only having to spit some out of her mouth when the wind kicked back.

"I am not Zephyr!" The voice cracked a bit, only to clear his throat and start talking again "Do not mistake me for that... that- circus lunatic!"

The man reappears, only at a distance, weary that the girl would attempt to attack him once more "My name is Allen! I'm a tower wizard of the Golden Gatling gang!" He watched as Julia huffed out, still glaring at him.

"Lies! You're just using an illusion to try and trick me!" She shouted back.

"I am not an illusion!" Allen cried back, desperately trying to persuade her.

"Then let me punch you!" The mad girl held her fists in the air, not attempting to make a move.

"I do not wish to be punched!" The man flinched, even though she didn't move from her spot.

Another exasperated yell until Julia eventually just... fell over in exhaustion. She wasn't planning on this happening, where even was she?! She didn't feel the world open up around her like usual so she couldn't be in a different reality. Julia just felt...

"Tired.." she mumbled to herself, sitting up and thinking more about it when it finally hit her "I'm in a dreamscape."

She glanced up at the nervous man who was attempting to get closer to her, to him it was like trying not to anger a snake. Julia found it hard to believe... was she in Zephyr's head? Was this his realm? This is what he sees?

"Have you... calmed yourself?" This 'Allen' person asked. If he had a stick he'd poke her.

Julia sighed, slowly standing up, and giving this man an annoyed look.

"I don't blame you for acting the way you did, honestly I was expecting some sort of... outburst." He shuffled back, a nervous laugh. Allen sighed "I just wasn't expecting such a fast... reaction."

"Who are you. Really?" Julia stood up, this man was the exact person she saw in her flashes. The man with the sun insignia on yellow or was it golden robes?

"I told you who I am, I'm am Allen, tower wizards, and a gang.. well Ex gang member." He scratched his head "that's a long story for later, but! It's you I've been wanting to meet for such a long, long time!"

The man smiled, circling Julia and inspecting her. He adjusted his yellow rimmed glasses that were cracked, and said: "My have you grown!" He got in her face.

"Hold on, wait!" She pushed his face back, a little weirded out about him now "what is your deal? What's going on here!?"

"Ah- perhaps we should sit somewhere more... comfortable?" Allen waved his hand to follow him, and in the distance, Julia could see this large tower smack center in the middle of nowhere. "It's my home, even though everything here is just a copy of.. what I once had."

The walk was long, but eventually, they had made it to the tower. Julia had never been in a dreamscape that felt so... realistic. It made her nervous for some odd reason.

The sandstone tower was so much cooler then it was outside. "Being trapped in your own head, and knowing it's not real... really gets me sometimes." The Wizard gestured around his home and looked at her with a smile. The building inside had various books and other apparatus that Julia had no idea what did what. "but at least it keeps me busy... I haven't been in control of my body in centuries!"

"In... control?" Julia questioned the man as she sat down at a nice little stone table.

Allen sighed "yes... the one piloting what used to be my body is... Zephyr..." he looked to the attic of his tower, spite in his eyes "my encounter with the moon demon wasn't a lovely one." The man shook his head, sitting down in a hurry "but enough about me for now! I wanted to talk about you!"

Julia was taken aback by the sudden excitement, watching as the wizard sat down with her. The girl was about to say something when she was cut off by excited jabbering.

"What had happened since we first met, how did you do it? Befriend the demon!?" He got up and looked at her again; he looked at her in all angles like she was some sort of book "how are you not dead yet?! How did you develop magic? There are things I've been wanting to know!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Julia held up her hands, telling the wizard to sit down.

Allen immediately held his hands to his side, sitting down. He had another episode as his gang members called it. "Sorry. Habits." He nervously chuckled.

Clearly this man was a little... unstable still, but the thought of her being the only human he's been able to contact in proclaimed 'centuries' was just... sad. Allen just wanted some info, even if it is little, to fill in the gaps he had spent trapped in his own mind by Zephyr.

"On one condition," Julia held up her finger, looking at Allen "you tell me what exactly happened to you..."

"Oh! With pleasure!" Allen was all too happy to oblige.

* * *

A wild torrent of electricity flickered around, Gabriele could feel the small threads in his body being pulled by the electromagnetic force. His hat had fallen off, but he was to busy trying to figure out what exactly was happening.

At the corner of a turn, the doctor witnessed a fight. Button was frantically discharging electricity to hit an unseen foe, she was frightened clearly. Gabriele never thought he'd see a dweller with electrical abilities, let alone one with this caliber of power.

Without meaning to, this child could easily kill someone during an outburst just like this. Good thing he was already dead, the least favorable outcome would be getting stuck to a wall.

"Button!" Gabriele shouted, hoping the child would hear him. However, the small dweller did not look his way.

He charged into the open space, refrain from removing the metal objects in his pockets in fear they might just fly away. Once he stepped into the open, Button immediately recognized the doctor, with a cry she zipped down next to him.

The child curled around his neck for comfort, shivering heavily "the monster, it's here!" She quietly whimpered.

Boxes that served as a barrier fell, burned, charred, or slightly smoking. Gabriele immediately took a stance, malice in his voice.

" _You._ " The doctor pointed out, fully intended to protect the child now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! I've finally introduced the main problem with Zephyr! It had been a long time coming and the reason behind this certain situation will be interesting. Of course, we also see that Gabriele will be having a bit of trouble himself.


	25. Horror amongst the Stars: Part three

**(Chapter Twenty Five: Horror amongst the Stars: Part three)**

Julia had no idea how long she spent talking to Allen, the guy was... surprisingly... nice. Of course, he was the kind of person who could talk on and on about certain trivial things, like his vast knowledge of the desert, different kinds of cacti, and snakes that reside there.

Julia twitched when he just started rambling about the time Zephyr was scaring her with those... reptiles. Though, unlike a few, the man was very perceptive and noticed right away to ceased that conversation.

He continued listening to what Julia had to say, learned that she wasn't originally magically gifted... but mutated due to the exposure she had at a young age. He listened to her talk about how she and MoonJumper became friends and eventually like family.

"That fact that he sacrificed himself to save you means he had changed very much..." Allen muttered out loud. "And all you did was be clueless and clumsy. But also, compassionate, and your willingness to help.." The wizard smiled at her. "I wish I was in control when we first met, it would have been lovely to have a friend... no- a little sister like you!" The man laughed at himself.

"L-little sister?" Julia gave him a strange look.

"We are but siblings-in-arms, aren't we? Chosen by the same master of magic." Allen shrugged, looking at her "Sorry, a silly thought."

"No, no... that's okay." The girl scratched her head, sighing. "Did... you have any family or siblings from before?"

The man hummed "the closes thing would have been my gang mates... that's about it." The man then tapped the table in thought once more "well, except our leader Delilah. She was... special to me." He then looked up with a kind smile "it truly is nice to talks to someone after so long."

During the conversation, a feeling, a sharp uncomfortable pain shot through Julia. It made the girl stand up in a hurry as she held her chest. Seeing this Allen immediately stood by her, trying to figure out what just happened.

"Are you alright!?" He asked

Heavy breaths came from her as Julia zoned out for a moment, then suddenly saying "I have to go." As she tried to make her way out the door inhabit, but Allen called out to her.

"Wait!" She stopped, turning around to look at him. "I'm assuming getting to me was rather... difficult. Take this!" Allen had tossed her a golden charm, something that looked like it came from a high-end jewelry store. "It's of my own creation, ever wondered how we got around so fast?"

The girl quickly inspected it, it was just a golden bracelet. Nothing too out of the ordinary. With furrowed brows, Julia looked back up at him "Thank you but we're in a dreamscape, how will I-?"

"Ah, if you're wondering how that will work. Don't worry! It will find you!" He then said quickly, "place it on your arm and spin it!"

* * *

Julia woke up startled, taking In breaths as she sat up. Her head was spinning as she tried to stand in a hurry. Placing a hand to her head, she was immediately greeted with something smooth and cold. In her hand was a golden bracelet and her breath hitched again.

"That really happened..." she whispered.

She remembered what he had said, and placed the bracelet around her wrist. It was odd, it seemed to float, like if magnets were stabilizing it in place. Julia then decided to do what Allen suggested and spun the golden bracelet; her thought was only of Gabriele and the studio.

Something was wrong.

Well, a few things were wrong. One, Reality seemed to have blurred around her, two was that Julia was being blinded by the sun, and three she was in front of Dead bird Studio. She nearly fell over from the sudden change in the atmosphere; from the cold and into the heat was a terrible feeling.

Julia shook her head however, no time to dwell on this, she had to hurry. Wobbly legs guided her over to the front sliding doors, then proceeded to make her way down. It took while but halfway down the stairway Julia noticed it was being crowded by staff members and the two directors. Half of the storage room was smoking and set off a wide alert.

People were putting out fires that were still trying to breathe, and Julia pushed passed a few folks to get a better look. Panic in her mind as she saw the state of the place. Gabriele was supposed to be meeting up with Button to make sure she was okay.

"Come on, come on!" She whispered, walking around charred debris.

"Hey, hey! Dolly under here!" Julia immediately stopped as she looked down, she was so caught up looking for Gabriele, she didn't see that Doppler was trapped under a pile of boxes. "Little help?"

With a flick of her wrist, Julia slammed down a barrier, breaking the already destroyed crates freeing the doppelgänger. "Have you seen Gabriele? Is he okay!?" She quickly asked.

Doppler just grunted, brushing off splinters, and shrugged. Julia just glared at them, walking off. Paying no more mind to them or why they were down here under rubble wasn't important to her. Holding out her locket charm, she tried to zone in on Gabriele's whereabouts.

She was using too much energy, she could feel it. The sudden jump to the studio was unexpected, not thinking that it would take that much from her. She could feel the familiar pain of the cracks on her face under the eye patch burning her.

The locket started to float, leading her in a direction. Her hopes started to rise as she hurried, the clacking of her shoes echoed in a quick rhythmic pattern. However, she stopped dead in her tracks when she found something she wasn't looking for.

The doctor's hat laid on the ground by itself, untouched by the fire but its owner was nowhere to be found. "Gabriele... where are you?" Julia whispered, walking up and carefully grabbing his hat like it would fall apart on her. She looked at it for a moment, face scrunched as she tried to hold herself together.

But she couldn't.

With a roar, Julia sliced the nearest objects with her strings. Boxes and some metal polls slid off of each other and crashed to the ground. Julia placed a hand to the searing pain now as she removes her eye patch from her face. She was frustrated that things like these always happen when she never expects it.

Gripping onto the hat with a desperate hug, she cried out, wondering what happened. Why couldn't she find him? Where did he go?

* * *

Julia sat alone in the attic, the light shining on her like the world was mocking her. Singling her out and putting a spotlight on her lone figure. If anyone else was in the room with Julia, you wouldn't be able to see her face, just that ominous neon green glow from her damaged face and iris.

It looked almost frightening.

Julia wanted to look for him, figure out how she could traverse the realms like MoonJumper, who still isn't back from his mission, and find where Gabriele could be. Perhaps he fell through a rift, or worse case of thought... he burned to ashes.

All she could do now was wonder and worry. To a point where it almost made her sick.

During the new week of recording, Julia had been very unresponsive during breaks once everything was back in order from the storage fire. The only time she talked to another person would be when she was acting. Everyone seemed worried but no one said anything. They noticed just how... unstable she seemed. Nobody was sure if it grew with each passing day or if it was just a trick of their mind.

* * *

_The engineer hurried with her captain and the remaining soldiers, along with the space travelers that happened to come across their ship. They were running to the engine room, hoping that they could power on the escape pods and flee. The unseen enemy had grown stronger by the minute with each person abducted in a flash. No trace of the remaining; assumption was that this monster feed upon warm flesh._

_"If we could get just a small part of the power back on, we might be able to evacuate a few." The engineer said, busying herself with wires that were needed to open a pair of jammed doors. Rewiring took work and sometimes, but the engineer was swift in her skill._

_"There must be a way to defeat these monsters darling, I am not leaving my ship like this!" The captain said, looking at the engineer as she pulled away from the wires._

_"Captain, with all due respect, look around, you only have one engineer, and your ship is in shambles." She smacked the door frame and finally got the thing working "even if we managed to remove ourselves of this monster, we wouldn't be able to survive another three days."_

_"S-sir, she has a point, we can't fix this problem now. It's far too gone." One of the soldiers said, looking around fearfully._

_"We got to protect what's left of us, captain." Another one said._

At that moment, nerves were high, especially for Julia. When it was time for the monster to come out and claim another person for the scene, she had forgotten it was her for the next encounter. Her paranoia kicked her fight or flight on and she sure didn't run. No- her body took control and wrapped multiple different strands of strings around Doppler's form once they had lunged at her.

Most of which tied around the being's neck, malice in both their eyes. With an intense staredown only then Julia knew it. The being wasn't playing a role or acting for the scene. The doppelgänger was planning on hurting her. However, in the other's eyes, that's not what it looked like. To them, she was the monster strangling a person playing their part.

"Julia stop!" Melody cried out, stomping her foot forward.

Julia looked at her slowly, stopping the child in her tracks. The adult's eye patch had fallen off from the attack, giving the child a clear shot of her magic corruption. Everyone froze, but Julia snapped out of it once she saw Melody and Bonnie's face of terror.

"Darlin, are you..-?" Grooves tried to talk to her, she warned him about this, he never knew that it would happen. He thought she was stronger than this.

Kicking Doppler away from herself, she hyperventilated. She watched and backed away from the crowd of people.

"I.. told you she was a monster." Doppler chuckled but coughed out holding his neck that nearly came off.

The look Melody gave her was filled with so many emotions that Julia couldn't bear to stand in the same room with anyone. Julia needed to run. She needed to be alone. Like the world wants her to be.

Words didn't come to Julia as she bolted, Melody and Bonnie chased after her. The sound seemed to blur altogether as the tall girl quickly closed the door to the changing room grabbing all of her stuff, including her newly claimed charm, and vanished without a trace.

Melody had bashed the door open with her umbrella as she looked around with a sorrowful face.

"Julia..?" Was all she said as Bonnie placed a hand on her shoulder.

* * *

Julia found herself back in Subcon forest, deep deep in the woods. No minions, no Snatcher. Not a single being. Finally able to release her rage, Julia screamed out, a tight grip around her head as she held it.

Crouched down like she was hiding, a wave of energy lashed out around her, nearly slicing a tree down, but causing some major damage. If she hadn't had gotten out of the studio in time, she would have killed more then a few folks.

Once things had calmed down, Julia laid in a prone form, just lost in her thoughts once more.

Why was she like this?

How did everything end up to this?

She just wanted a friend and everything just escalated into something she could have or couldn't control.

She couldn't go back to the studio now. She couldn't go anywhere without having to face the kid and everyone else. They probably hate her now.

Back to being alone for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the long wait on this one, I was taking a fandom break and indulging my Hollow knight stuff for a bit. I still am at the moment in all honesty, But we're slowly making onto the second part of the arc! also, sorry if this seemed rushed, I was at a loss on how I wanted to finish this chapter, though Julia has finally acquired her last charm that allows her to jump from a location to another.


	26. A Helping Hand

**(Chapter Twenty Six: A helping hand)**

Grooves was alone in his dressing room, sitting down facing the mirror. He glared at himself while thinking; trying to find a rather difficult answer. The production of his new movie was announced 'on hold' while they sort the situation at hand.

Of course, nobody outside the studio knew that Julia had a major meltdown and ran to who knows where. Without a trace of a clue no doubt. Not sure how she managed that, but it doesn't surprise him.

"Perhaps the darlin just need to cool off for a bit.." he mused to himself.

A knock at his door grabbed his attention. He turned around in his chair and looked at an owl that opened the door slightly. A quick look around and then nudged their head in a way of saying 'time to go' and the old DJ understood. He'll finally get to see some sort of light in this darkness.

He waited for the owl to leave before he got up himself and made his way towards his rival's side of the studio. The Conductor had been absent this entire time, but he had his reasons. The only time when he reached out to Grooves was when the storage room was set ablaze. That old bird had been undercover, researching about the odd being that Grooves decided to hire the moment he heard wind of it.

It was like playing the detective in his western movie. Minus the western part.

The penguin reached the old owl's room and knocked on the door, heavy footsteps were heard on the other side and eventually was greeted with the grumpy face the Conductor always had when he saw him.

"Ey, bout time ya got here." The Conductor opened the door wider for DJ Grooves to enter. There was a moment of silence as the penguin looked around. Cameras that were salvaged, tapes, two kinds of television sets. Everything was all wired up and a few videos were still playing. "ya pecked up, lad."

"Look, Conductor darlin, I hand no idea things would spiral out of control like this." Grooves said, watched the Conductor move back over to his work.

"Ay, and what part of 'monster on me train' meant to yer?" Conductor glanced back at him "the lass was fightin them, and the peckneck lost. Probably holdin a grudge no doubt."

"That was so long ago though!" DJ walked up to the tv, watching a few recordings that seemed uneventful.

"Lad, people don't just change in a week!" He yelled

"You did, darlin." Grooves retorted

The old owl sputtered, looking at him with an angry face "that was because of the timepieces ya peck!" He pointed at the tv.

In a dark corner of the storage room, you could see a small ghostly figure speeding off away from somewhere. Shortly after, a clear shot of the monster that had been given rights to roam the place was chasing after it "that thing wants ta do this! That's how it is!"

The Conductor turned to Grooves completely "This video was dated before we even met the hat lass, before I lost award forty-two." He crossed his arms and snarled "this Doppler lad has been here before. Huntin it seems."

Grooves was at a loss, looking at the screen before him. The little ghost was being protected by a larger one, a parent it seems. Grooves remove his glasses as he watched the figure fight off the doppelgänger, only in the end to succumb to a gruesome end. The larger ghost was devoured and ceased to exist.

"Long time ago, before you and I had taken ownership of the studio.. there were two human actors; an old lad and a little lassie." The Conductor strolled over to some old files he had found "they were wonderful actors fer 'slice of life' related films, but.." the owl tugged down his hat before removing it completely "there was an accident; stage lights came down on em, neither survived."

The old penguin looked at the files and read a little more, turned out there was a group of birds that managed to chase away, almost like banished the doppelgänger from returning to the studio after they found out a few other cast members had gone missing... but everything else was either smudge up and unreadable or it was falling apart.

"...And I let that thing back in..." DJ grooves let out a pained sigh, shameful even "I didn't know... honestly."

"And I believe ya, ya stupid peck neck." The Conductor placed his hat back on his head as he watched Grooves place his glasses back on "Have yer noticed any staff members missin yet? It'd be best we don't let the studio panic; we should deal with this ourselves."

It was their studio now; their home and the cast members were their families. Nobody messes with family.

"Conductor, darlin, you sure we can fight this thing on our own?" Grooves looked at him, a little unsure about what he might be thinking for a plan.

"We got bombs, knives, what more could we possibly use? We nae have magical powers like the tall lass, but it's somethin." The Conductor looked at him, counting his feathered fingers, "nothin we don't have that won't cause us more damage than normal."

"If we want the studio to still be standing, our best bet would be to find our runaway magical dear." Grooves crossed his flippers "not sure if Melody and Bonnie are up to the challenge... they seem to be on its side."

"Ey, then we just tell 'em." The Conductor said, but then thought about it "nae, wait- if any kind of information got out, we'd lose our surprise attack..."

"Search party, then?" Grooves asked.

Looking at his old rival, The Conductor nodded with a stern frown.

* * *

Julia, who was still a mess, hair untied and still in her movie costume, stumbled around. The far, deep clearing, hand on her head as she dealt with the pain threatening to crack her skull open. When the pain finally subsided, she leaned against a tree, sliding down. Stray mushrooms were the only luminous in the darkness that the moon couldn't touch.

Jumbled thoughts and mumbles could only be heard by Julia, and her alone. She knew she was overreacting, but the feeling of dread that she could kill someone at any given time frightened her. She wasn't able to keep in control of herself no matter how hard she tried.

Should she go back? Should she stay away forever and just become apart of the forest? Perhaps this is what she gets for wanting things in life?

No, she got here because she worked for it. She suffered for her place in this world, she fought hard just to try and stay.

But what does the world want? It's fighting back. Like if she was a virus threatening its will to live.

Gripping her head in her hands, Julia clenched her teeth together in frustration. In truth though, being alone wouldn't be so bad. It wasn't the first time and honestly, she was used to it.

"Julia?" The sudden voice scared her; who was it? Who found her!? Her head snapped to the side, both eyes in view for the small figure to see; before her was a boy who seemed to be panicking.

"Sorry! Sorry!" The familiar boy raised his hands.

Julia squinted her eyes at him, "Tie...?" She said, almost not believing he was here. Let alone, actually talking.

He awkwardly waved "...Hiya."

Gasping in pain, her hand reached for her eye, it was back that head-splitting pain. She just wants it to go away. Once it did, she asked a question; "Tie, are you really... why are you here?" She looked up at him, keeping it in mind to stay away. She didn't want to hurt him too.

"I-I can travel dimensions now. With my new neckwear." A sudden pause because he spoke up again quickly "but this is a dreamscape version of me right now." He blurted, he seemed nervous. Honestly, Julia would be as well if she saw what she looked like right now "A-anyway! What are you doing here... all alone?"

She took a moment before answering "...Staying away from people." Without missing a beat, she looked at the boy "a lot has happened. Too much of me is out of control..." She gripped her shoulders and curling in on herself a little more "and I'm... I'm scared of what's happening. I thought that, that things would be better, now with so much behind me."

She closed her eyes for a moment and took a breath "but it just... keeps getting screwed up. And it always feels like it's my fault somehow."

Silence flooded the area now, no one made a noise as they both looked away from one another. Julia wished that they could have finally met in better circumstances.

Still looking away, Julia, just below a whisper "Is MoonJumper with you?" Maybe if he came back things would seem better again. Just that tiny bit of hope.

"MoonJumper? ...No." he looked at her admittedly, "He left before I got the hang of traveling." He shifted, "Time is a bit unstable between our dimensions, so... he might be late."

Julia seemed to deflate, "oh..." was all she could say.

A single moment passed before the different dimensional child spoke up, "Julia. I want to help you." He looked at her, earnest about what he said. He cared, Julia could see this.

However, her thinking made her deny the kind sentiment of his.

"You can't help me with this." She shook her head, try to fight these thoughts way, of course, she needs help, let him help! "It's what I've become. I can't change it. I've hurt people... and I can hurt a lot more." She gripped onto herself, trying to stop herself from losing to much control.

"it's better if I'm just... alone."

"That's not true!" Tie shouted, denying her way of thought. "You think that accepting that will help you cope with it, but it won't!" He looked at her, know this all too well "It just becomes a lead weight on your heart that hurts more and more every day you say that is all you are!"

"And what's the other option...?" Julia demanded, trying to calmly speak as anger flared up in her "go back... and have everybody afraid of what I'll do next?" She stood up slowly and looked at him, her voice rising with her "to constantly be fearful of hurting others? To be helpless as people I care about to get taken, or worse, killed!?" Green energy flowed around her, but neither moved.

"And be unable to cope with that to the point I do something I'll always regret!?" The outburst caused a tree behind Tie to collapse and crash down to the ground.

She ignored the pain she felt, and the child in front of her didn't even flinch.

Her chest constricted it's self as she spoke, shaking her head whispering "I couldn't bear that..." huffing and trying to avoid another situation. The pain was more noticeable now. "So it's better if I do things alone."

It was quiet, the two didn't move as the other thought to themselves.

"I understand it." Was all he said.

The boy looked up at her, "I understand what it's like... to be scared that all you do is hurt everybody around you." Julia noticed the boy's face seemed to waver a bit "That all you do is make things worse for everybody else."

Julia continued to listen, her mind seemed to go fuzzy for a moment "that for everybody else's sake, you're better off being alone... or dead"

Tie took a deep breath, seemingly deciding on what to say next "back on my homeworld... I was different from everybody else. I was cautious, whilst everybody else was happy." Julia looked down at him, curious "that cautiousness turned into fear, and that fear turned into sadness and anger." The boy was doing his best to hold it together "everybody who came in contact with me... became unhappy. Something nobody there wanted."

When Julia was little, she never frowned when she was truly said, even though her pain she smiled. She played by herself while others talked about things behind her back. She was blissfully unaware of the world.

But Tie? He was aware, he saw and heard everything. He did his best to fit in. She had it easier due to her dense personality, and him seeing her like this must have brought up so much pain for Tie. Julia frowned at herself, but those other thoughts finally went away.

"I 'hurt' everybody I touched. I was called a misery, nobody wanted to even know me." Tie struggled with himself "the worst part is that they were right to do so. I was the oddity." The boy's face heated up and he held back tears "but even during all that... I truly didn't want to hurt anybody."

"I didn't want anybody else to feel sad, to feel how I felt. So I ran away. I hid, alone, and tried to bury these emotions. But the more I was alone, the more it hurt, the more I hated myself." Seeing the boy look so upset made her feel sympathy for him. Just to reach out and hug him... "I felt like I was a lost cause. That all I would ever do is poison everybody else. I... I wanted to kill myself so nobody else would feel like me."

He sniffled, as he wiped away stray tears "but then, one day, I just had a feeling. This... idea that somewhere out there... was a woman named Julia." He gazed off at that "who did amazing things and managed to overcome a lot of obstacles, to fight for a place in this world."

The way he looked up at her reminded her of how she looked up at MoonJumper... that hope, that candle in the dark. "And that thought was all it took to help me keep going. Not heal, but keep going." The boy walked up to her, "Julia. Everybody hated me back then. But you... you have a lot of people who care about and love you. I know that for sure."

"Being alone forever isn't the answer, and it's going to take a while to love yourself... I'm not there yet... but they'll want to help you." He placed a hand to his chest, sincerity "and so do I. No matter how bad things get with you." He smiled weakly at Julia, eyes slightly red from the tears...

"Because I'll always want to be your friend."

Julia looked down at him for a moment and crouched down so that they were eye level. "You're a really good kid." The woman choked back her emotions, trying to not lose it again. "I wish we could have met sooner."

Tie nodded "... yeah."

Suddenly, a portal opened up under him, making the boy gasp from surprise.

"Tie!" Julia grabbed onto him quickly by the hand.

"I'm out of time!" He cried and the gravity became stronger.

He had to go, she'll be alright "I can guess! But I wanted to say thanks." She smiled at him, deep down she didn't want to see him go like everyone else.

"That's alright." He nodded, the called back "hey, if you ever need my help, I'll come and help, okay?"

"Same here." Julia nodded back.

The woman slowly let him go, watching as her friend vanished behind the portal.

Things where quiet now, but she turned her attention to the clearing where her stuff laid folded. she was under the impression that her hat was calling her as the moonlight shown down on it.

"It's going to be okay..." she told herself. "I just need a little more help."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A thank you to OPFan37 over on Fanfiction.net with the original dialogs between Julia and Tie; I added some of my own flair to it. Not much but, I decided to do things at the last minute...
> 
> I'm getting ready for things to pick up a little with the next chapter that was originally going to be in here but realized it would have dragged on a little too long then how I wanted it to be. This chapter was a nice filler and a little more info about the history with Button and Doppler.


	27. Wizard of the Sun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! back with another chapter. I was able to finish this part but relatively slow due to the fact that It's slightly dark in setting later down as you read. Guns and death will be discussed and if you hadn't read the title yet, It's about Zephyr and Allen! Hope this chapter will be worth the wait- I'll be working on the next soon-ish!

**(Chapter Twenty Seven: Wizard of the Sun)**

Julia stood still, readjusted her necktie. Her original clothes were finally back on her. Hair tie back in place, a locket with her cousins around her neck, and the mysterious golden bracelet that floated around her wrist.

All of her courage slowly coming back, but slight fear still lingering around. Julia wasn't ready to confront her other friends just yet, but there was one person she wanted to see. Perhaps they could help her with her condition, or give her a clue on what's going on.

"The only problem is... how am I going to sneak a large box away...?" She mumbled to herself.

Looking at her golden bracelet, Julia wonders just how much weight she could teleport away with her.

"Only one way to find out," she mumbled to herself getting ready to spin the golden bracelet "worst-case scenario, I'll have to bolt with my bike..."

Taking a deep breath and letting it out, she went into action. The slight dizziness from the jump still felt odd, but she didn't fall over or throw up so that's a good sign! Julia had thought about being next to the tree she planned on having her house; when she arrived, the tree was still looking like it was before except the house on top was just a wooden foundation.

The walls were gone and soon the floor will be too. Shaking her head she reminds herself mentally that she needed to make her way over to the shed that kept Allen and Zephyr.

Carefully striding over to the back of the tree, she could see the place undisturbed. However, Julia froze when a twig snapped, it wasn't from her. Twirling around she could see Kero and his new little group of minion friends that have been hanging around him and her since she had come back to this world.

Julia's son and his four friends just stayed quiet and the woman stared on with wide eyes. Unable to say any words, the only thing she could do was gesture a finger to her lip and make a shushed sound to be quite.

The group just looked at each other and carefully walked up to her.

"Mama..? What's going on?" Kero tilted his head, whispering "I heard you attacked someone at your new job."

Did word get around already? Julia sighed looking at him "I only attacked in defense, the person... monster... who attacked me is very bad." She said as the group followed her.

The woman looked into the shed and was thankful to see that no one had moved anything or touched the box. If MoonJumper comes back, he's gonna be extremely mad at what she was planning.

"When will you be able to come home?" Kero asked his mother.

Julia smiled at him as she turned around to look at him, crouching down "Soon bud, I just... need to get myself under control, and figure things out." She patted his head gently "I promise."

"Okay," Kero said quietly, he had faith in her but it still made him feel sad about the whole situation.

Then another question came up as he watched Julia attempting to pick up the chest "Why are you trying to take the scary man with you?" He tilted his head in worry and asked.

Julia just smiled once more "believe it or not, there is a nice man in here trapped with the scary man." She said to him. "One might even say, they're the same."

Kero was confused, but he watched as his mother struggle to carry it. The box was huge, and the pieces inside were most likely not helping. With a huff, Julia reached to her golden band and spun it.

The tall woman just stood there, waiting... then suddenly whispered "Are you serious? There's a weight limit?" Glaring down at the item. Sighing to herself, Julia dragged the box outside and looked for her motorbike just behind the shed.

The children just watched as she struggled to tie and bind the chest to her contraption, whatever emotional moment they had seemed to be forgotten as they stared off dumbfounded.

* * *

Julia wasn't sure how she was able to get away with how noisy her bike was, it had been some time since she had last used it. She might even need to check on it when this is all over, making sure nothing was wrong.

When she arrived at a different clearing, unsure if it would be good and far enough, she hopped off her bike and got to work with untying the large box locked box. Figuring out how to undo the magic on it will come a little later.

She was going to do what she thought she was going to do. Julia wasn't going to lie when just the thought alone scared her.

The girl was unsure about how things were going to go.

But he'll be the only one who'd be capable of helping her.

Placing down the box and taking a good look at it, she realized just how much detail went into making such a thing. The question was though, did Moon make it, or did he just enchanted it?

"You are a mystery to me, dad..." Julia whispered, hoping that saying or thinking his name would make him appear.

But nothing.

It would have faltered her plans either way if he did.

Sitting down in front, Julia relaxed, breathing in slowly to a meditative state. Soon she fell asleep, and once she realized it, the girl was back in that desert. Sun covered by a slight overcast was giving off an odd vibe. Marching forward through the dunes, she eventually found the tall tower.

Something was off about it this time however, where before it was just a lone sandstone building, now was a camp surrounding it. Tattered and broken in some parts. It wasn't there before, Julia noted.

"Julia! Welcome back!" Allen scared the girl making her hop in place and swing a fist making the man yelp in fear as he ducked.

Once she realized who it was Julia groaned out "God, Allen! Can't you just wait for me at the tower?" Exasperated, Julia glared at the man. "You know? Try to be a normal man and not... like your made of magic..." she started to slow her speech because that's exactly what this man was.

_Magic._

"Well..." Allen started "I cannot stop the magic part, but duly noted- though that's not why I came out here." Allen took off towards the tower, a gleam of hate towards it. "It seems Zephyr and I are reliving a memory... I wanted no part in it, but I cannot seem to control it." He spaced out.

Julia watched the man walk away towards the tower, the last thing she heard him say was "I promised you my story, now is a good time to watch."

Looking back at the tower, the camp was more noticeably populated, it seemed like time just went backward and now people were walking around. All figments from Allen's imagination... just like how Gabriele's memories were.

Taking a good look around, every person was either tanned or cooked by the sun, there were some pale-skinned folks but they seemed to be wearing more protection for what seemed like... cowboys? Wanglers...? What were they?

Julia remembers that Allen was in a gang, the Golden Gatling Gang it was... and true to that name all members seemed to be wearing gold. Rings, chains, earrings... all of it. They all conversed with one another and not a sound could be heard, guess Allen couldn't remember what a crowd sounded like.

And in the distance, there was a rather dark-skinned man- no wait! _That was a woman!_ Large muscles, height rivaling Gabriele's... maybe she was slightly taller. Dark Golden hair that was tied up and more of it covered up one of her eyes. The viable one has colored a lovely rose pink and golden lipstick decorated her confident smile.

She was the leader no doubt about it. She could bench press three men if she wanted to- Honestly, this lady scared Julia, but oddly enough... she admires her. The lady wore a yellow button-up duster, that covers a belt the had the initials of GgG, which Julia understood, Golden Gatling Gang.

"Allen! My golden light!" She yelled out, not caring of the other members heard her, her voice was like a southern belle.

Some would get confused if they saw her first.

Allen played along, unable to control himself, like Gabriele, Julia also noticed.

"Delilah! My desert rose! Love of my life!" He smiled out, holding his heart. "How goes the plan for the great heist?"

'That was Delilah? Wait- did he say love?!' Julia was trying to gather her thoughts but pushing them aside, for now, she realized she shouldn't overthink things for now.

Delilah sat with a few other members, a map, knives, and a few guns laid around. Julia got a closer look at the scene; Ink is drawn on the map with words she couldn't understand and a trail that intercepted something big.

The large lady leaned backflipping a gold coin through her fingers. "Somewhat well, found a way to intercept the train, but getting in unnoticed will be slightly hard." She looked down on the map "with such a big name as ours, busting this old magi-loco is bound to have guards..."

"Especially with what it's packing..." Allen finished.

"Special gem that could power our guns for a lifetime!" Delilah smiled, looking at her love. "But honestly? Just in it for that gold, you can have that gem if you wish my dear."

Allen smiled happily at her, imagining the experiments he could do with that gem. "I'll do my best to see if I can assist in any way!" He waved, heading off towards the tower.

The scene changed, seemed like a few days had passed. It was nighttime and some of the members were gone, Allen sat at the top of his tower talking so someone... no wait...

Julia noticed the familiar floating figure! "Dad-" she whispered, he hung ominously against the moonlight, something she never seemed to notice before.

MoonJumper was... kind of scary.

But Julia needed to remember, he wasn't like that anymore, that wasn't her MoonJumper.

"How might you be? A demon of the moonlight?" She heard Allen say, looking up at him "be gone with you, I have no desire to mess with the undead." He waved him away as he continued to look through some books.

He was frustrated, looking for answers that never came to him.

"Oh, but I have a deal for you!" MoonJumper smiled a fake smile, looking down at him with sneering eyes "during my travels I found this... book."

This caught Allen's attention as he looked away from his work at MoonJumper. With a sway of the puppeteer's hand, he watched as an oddly glowing book pop up. Whatever that writing was on the cover it made Allen's eyes pop with surprise.

"A book of forbidden spells- where- how did you find this!?" He carefully stood up on the tower roof, giving it his all to not hop up in a hurry. "These books were scattered and sealed away, you'd need at least five archmages to open a single seal!"

"You'd be surprised..." MoonJumper chuckled, "this book can be yours for a price..."

"Let me guess, my soul? Because that book is well worth more-" Allen pointed out, glaring at the ghost.

"My, you are smart!" Moon laughed "yes! Your soul, but also your alliance to me! I'm looking for a promising apprentice!" He pointed out, slowly bringing the book closer to Allen, just out of reach "and you seem to be the most promising one!"

Allen stopped, looked at the demon with a defiant glare "my alliance lies with the Golden Gatling Gang. I can promise you, my soul, if that is what you want; I will not be leaving my love's side, demon."

"You have your priorities straight... very well." MoonJumper gave a side glance, a sharp frown on his face, but then he slimed again. Those sharp fangs glistening of the light of the moon "but, here- take it... if you ever change your mind, feel free to call out."

"I'll be watching you." Was the last thing Allen heard as the ghost disappeared. The tower wizard held on tightly to the book that shouldn't even be there.

* * *

Gabriele woke, startled at the last bit of memories that had passed. The static still lingered in his fibers after being right next to the user. The doctor seemed to have fallen in-between space and time, the rift stream was even more unstable since the last he and Julia had seen.

No longer was it a straight line, It branched out and warped, debris opening holes in the walls and causing rifts to open on their own.

"Everything is a mess it seems..." he mumbled. Though, he snapped out of his thoughts and looked around frantically. The one who had used the ability was no longer with him!

With a worried shout, he called out "Button! Dear child, where are you!?"

He stood on that floating rock, waiting for something; a call or a movement... but it was just rocks and them colliding with one another. Gabriele's shoulders slumped, a child with that much power shouldn't be alone like that, a child shouldn't be alone in general.

Suddenly, a large hand tapped him on the shoulder, clearing their throat "My, does this child belong to you?"

The doctor spun around as fast as his body could allow him too, and when he turned around he was face to face with none other then MoonJumper holding the small dweller child!

"Button! MoonJumper-!" He looked up at the specter as the small ghost child flew at him. "Moon, it is good to see you again, but why have you been taking so long to return home!?"

"As... expected... time seems to be growing more unstable as of late." MoonJumper adjusted his cloak, looking at Gabriele rather embarrassed "and I... I got lost. I would have returned sooner but as you see the rift line is in turmoil."

"Yes... that much I can see since we feel through a hole." He looked down at Button, who was just shivering "and not just that... since you've been gone, Julia..."

MoonJumper got closer to him, grabbing his shoulders "what about my daughter?" He was worried but also held a firm face.

"Her mental state seems to be declining and I've been having trouble assisting her." He looked him in the eyes "We need to return as fast as we can! I'm sure things will be better once her entire family returns..."

* * *

Julia watched Allen descend into madness, and the fact that he remembered most of this is rather heartbreaking. She watched him make a contract with MoonJumper, she watched him create the very bracelet she wore. He seemed to be getting more into his studies of magic and the more he spent away from the gang... the more Delilah worried about him.

The more his gang feared him.

Julia sat down in the sand, she watched the scene shift to what was the day of the heist. Delilah was confronting Allen, who clung onto the forbidden book for his life.

She had found out why her boyfriend was so... so different now. He had lost his mind to the knowledge and power of the book. There was a reason why they were sealed away...

"Allen, my light... please hand me that book..." even though she could very well take the man down with physical strength, it was the magic the man might use in defense that made her uncomfortable. "We need to burn it. Please."

She reached a hand out to him and Allen stepped back. A sharp look of hate, almost feral like. Delilah, if she had just found out sooner, maybe she would have been able to help him fight it. A pained look covered her features as she stared at him; Allen looked back almost realizing what exactly is happening.

Throwing the book down, the tower wizard grabbed at his head, as if trying to ward off something. He yelled out, crying, and Delilah looked on in horror.

There was only one way to stop this.

Putting him out of his misery.

Quickly pulling out her gun, she aimed down the sights. Magical runes twirled and appeared at the end of the barrel, readying up a shot.

Julia watched with shock on her face. Seeing how Delilah, the strongest... the leader of the gang, falter slightly. She must be in so much pain in even thinking about shooting her love.

"Allen..." she called out somberly, making the man snap his head up like a deer caught in headlights.

Julia closed her eyes, she didn't want to see this part. However, it didn't stop her from hearing the shot ring out.

It was silent.

The air was different.

MoonJumper was there floating beside the body of Allen, a look of disappointment.

"Well, looks like you won't be needing your body anymore it seems." He smiled.

And with that... everything faded back to the normal dreamscape. Allen laid down staring at the sky with a somber face. Julia sighed as she walked over and sat with him.

"The shot didn't kill me. Missed my brain by an inch." He quietly said, looking at her with both eyes intact... seems like he'd rather stay like that. "However, it did destroy my eye. I can no longer see through it."

"And Zephyr...?" Julia asked.

"A byproduct of the book and MoonJumper's magic. Whatever thoughts tormented me that day took the shape of a real person." He closed his eyes, trying to calm himself down "it took control and that's what became Zephyr... a Being that only knows death."

A moment passed before Julia decided to break the news to him. "Well... you're not going to like this; I need to talk with Zephyr."

"Are you... I was going to say mad, but clearly, I'm the only one here who is." Allen sat up looking at here, removing his glasses to clean them "Whatever you plan on saying to him, the doll won't listen." He placed his glasses back on and stood up, helping Julia as well. "He never listens."

"Let me try..." she looked at him with a determination. If she could talk to Zephyr before, she probably can now.

With a sigh of defeat, Allen grabbed her hand leading her inside the tower. Once inside, they climbed a few flights of stairs and stopped to look up at the attic.

"He's still up there. Tied up." Allen looked at Julia when he released her hand "he may not be able to harm you, but if you need anything, do be scared to call out. I'll be here." He informed her.

With a nod, Julia and Allen worked together to pull down the ladder to the old attic that hadn't been stepped in since the two minds were sealed away. Julia climbed up those last steps and found out just how dark and dusty everything was.

Amid the cracks the let a sliver of light through she could see a figure with their head hung in defeat. Tied up by red glowing strings, their body held in place. He was aware that Julia was here, ever since her first appearance in their mind.

It was his mind as too after all.

A low chuckle from the doll and Julia's footsteps creaked now and again made her realized she was still scared of him. But she understood why and how he was created.

A mistake MoonJumper called him.

"So, come to rub salt in my wounds, huh? Not like you to do so, Diamond child." Zephyr held is head up to look at her, slowly as he did. It was clear to her he was tired.

"Not here to rub anything in, I've come to talk." She crossed her arms, glaring at him as Zephyr hung his head again "now that you're not trying to murder me, maybe you can hear me out instead." She didn't receive a reply, but Julia wasn't going to let that stop her from talking anyways.

"Look, we can put our differences behind us, we can be friends if you can just understand that I didn't steal MoonJumper away from you." Julia held her position; she noticed no movement from him but... he spoke up.

"No... no, you didn't. He chose you." He said to her, making the girl lower her arms "we wanted to be with you, he sacrificed himself for you. _He. loved. you._ "

"He didn't always love me. I was to blind to see that before... people can change." Julia crouched down to try and look at his face "so can you, and I'm willing to help."

"We do not-!" Zephyr paused, but spoke again looking up at her "I. Do not need your pity." His permanent smile never fading, even when it sounded like Zephyr was struggling to keep it together. "I don't want your pity."

"The girl who had nothing, now suddenly has everything!" He yelled, looking at her "a foolish child who doesn't know when to stay down!"

"And you never stopped to listen!" Julia yelled out "I never stopped moving on because I knew some people out there needed me to; people I admire and like." She moved even closer to Zephyr, grabbing his head making him so that he can continue looking at her "I saw things in a different light since then, and they helped me see that."

"Let me give you what I have, don't mistake pity for kindness!" Julia looked at him sternly in the eye.

The room grew quiet, unsure if Zephyr would say anything, but he did.

"Why...?" He asked, just barely a whisper "why would you help me, who has tormented your life over and over again...?" Julia still held his head so he couldn't look away "why show kindness when you're scared of me. Attack me, hide me away in a dark room- That is what MoonJumper tried to do"

"He hid me away, promised me that we would fight together. Raise an army together. Yet, he ordered me to stay in a dark place." His voice cracked when he started his nest sentence "never to see or hear anything-"

"He was scared of you." Julia said looked at him with realization, letting go of his head "what did you do to make him so scared."

"...when I had woke to this new world, I had been assaulted by Allen's precious memories... I was angry, vengeful... but- I was also saddened." He talked, telling the other half of what happened after Allen was shot "he had a lover, who instead of trying to help, ended his life. I wanted revenge for this quick escape, Delilah could have help! She could have stayed and helped him! Us!? I-"

Julia held his shoulders in reassurance. "You couldn't see what she saw. Delilah loved Allen to the very last moment... she put him down so that he wouldn't suffer anymore."

"I killed them all." Julia froze, and Zephyr never looked up "I single-handedly destroyed an entire planet's population in rage. I watched the world crumble afterward."

"I have no home, no friends, no family, nothing but my contract to the master... to MoonJumper... and even then, he considers me a mistake," Zephyr said; Julia noticed a few tears dripping down.

He was capable of emotions, he was able to cry... Julia didn't hallucinate Zephyr's face when he had been sealed away. Does he... regret what he's done?

"If... it makes you feel better..." the girl let him go backing away "When we first met... I wasn't scared of you. You just gave me a reason to be scared..."

"Lies..." he stated.

"No- it's true. Just like MoonJumper, I wanted to be your friend. I could have convinced him to let you stay. We..." Julia looked down, "we could have been a family. _If_ I could prove you wouldn't kill anyone anymore."

A dry, disbelieving chuckle came out of him "impossible, _do not lie_ to me about such things. I as Zephyr am no longer redeemable. I've lost all my chances with the moon demon."

"Not with me, though."

He looked up at the stubborn girl, why can't she take a hint that he just wants to fade away.

"I need your help, Zephyr... both you and Allen." Julia was finally going to ask him "I'll give you a taste of freedom and my friendship... kinship... of you help me out with a problem of myself."

"That is why you came here to face me?" He looked at her, his emotions were unreadable.

"I would have come anyway to talk to you. Set things straight... I always wanted to give you another chance." Julia had said, no glint of a lie anywhere.

She was serious about this.

"Leave..." was all he said.

"Zephyr-" Julia tried to protest

"I said leave!" He snapped at her, making her step back, but calmed down after that "...I need time... to think."

Julia softly smiled at this, at least he was going to think. For once.

"I'll be back soon then. I'll keep visiting until you finally decide." Julia smiled at him, waving goodbye, and vanished down the ladder.

Zephyr went back to his hanging, a sigh that was hard to pinpoint what emotions held behind it. Slowly and unaware, the strings the held him started changing colors. From a harsh red to a hopeful green.

The contract was being overwritten.


	28. Cooperation is everything

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this chapter seems a bit odd, I have some trouble gathering my thoughts and trying to piece together things in the right place. Old thoughts for a story you know? Took me a while to remember it all... or at least some of it. Hopefully, you guys will enjoy it though! (I see this chapter as a conversation before the big event that will be happening next chapter!)

**(Chapter Twenty Eight: Cooperation is everything)**

It was another new day; Lynn walked along the path to one side of Mafia town, things seem to be going crazy with rumors of Julia going missing. The cause was unknown, but there have been a few search parties.

She hummed to herself "hmm... never a dull moment with you, Mafia girl..." Lynn said Julia's nickname, a fond thought even though she was still sore about the whole Mafia take over. "Just what exactly are you doing?"

Kicking a can over the ledge, she remembered her old hideout. Taking a quick stroll down the rocky path, she wanted to visit it again. Upon turning the corner to look in, she froze.

Inside the cave was Julia, eating fruits and a sandwich. The taller girl froze up as well when she was noticed.

"Uhh...-" Lynn was at a loss for words, "what... whatcha doing here?"

"Hiding from the authorities." Julia stated "also friends for now. Kinda working on a personal problem."

"Neat." Lynn deadpanned, "can I join you?"

"As long as you don't call the Mafia on me-" Julia tossed her a banana and the hooded girl caught it.

"Oh, trust me. Not gonna happen." The kid walked into the cave and sat down, "man, what kind of crazy shenanigans have you gotten into now?"

Julia finished her food and sat back, looking out at the bright sunny sky and ocean. Turning her head back over to Lynn she filled her in with the info.

"Remember that amalgamation? On the train?" Julia inquired at her

"Oh yeah- that creepy thing; it jumped out the train window right?" Lynn remembered with a shiver "you told Melody and the other about it, right?

"I did, and also," the tall women sat up, looking at the child with a serious face "apparently, that thing got a job at the studio. Never trusted it for a moment."

"What!? Who allowed that!?" Lynn shouted, but covered her mouth and looked around "why would anyone hire that thing?"

"A monster movie," Julia stated.

Lynn seemed to understand that, nodding. It was still hard to believe that thing got away with being trusted. Scratching her head, Lynn looked back at Julia who seemed to be getting ready to move on.

"What happened? Why is everyone looking for you?" Lynn asked

Brushing the dust off, she looked back at the small girl "the thing attacked me, made sure I was all riled up before he attacked..." adjusting her hat, Julia let out a large sigh "when they failed, it made them look like I attacked first. Nearly took them out with my strings if Melody hadn't stopped me."

Lynn hummed out "should have just offed the monster."

"And prove him right that I can't stay in control? Tempting, but I didn't want to give anyone nightmares." Julia chuckled, smiling at Lynn "but in all seriousness, I think he got under Melody and Bonnie's skin. They might be after me... so don't tell them you saw me. Okay?"

"You got it. Let me know if I can help and I'll kick butt with you again, alright?" Lynn crossed her arms watched Julia step away a good few feet from her.

With a smile, Julia held out her wrist like she was looking at a watch and spun a golden bracelet. In a blink, the Mafia girl was gone. No trace of her was left.

"Whoah-" Lynn smiled at Julia's new ability.

* * *

The tower was dark as before, lights filtering in from cracks and boarded out windows. Allen leaned against the wall as he watched Zephyr hang from a spiderweb of thread. He inspected the odd occurrence of the magic strings slowly changing color.

What had caused such a reaction? Well, he assumed it was Julia, the girl seems to be doing a lot of bizarre and impossible things. With a sigh, he looked back at Zephyr's form, he hated coming up here and looking at him.

It was always a reminder that he was his very own prisoner.

"You should take her offer." Allen called out, serious eyes gleamed at him "I want my freedom as much as you want yours."

No response, but Allen knows he can hear him. If only they can agree.

"She's back." Was the only thing Zephyr mentioned before going quiet again.

"I know." Allen turned away and walked down the tower.

Once at the bottom he was greeted by Julia, who walked in with a smile. It made Allen ease up, when she's in a good mood it always seems to light up the place. Just a little.

"Julia, he hasn't said much since yesterday." He looked at the girl who was making her way up the stairs "whatever you said must be much to think about."

Julia turned to the man, nodded, and continued to walk up.

Of course, he knew what they talked about. Honestly, he just wished to see real daylight again. They have to come up with some sort of compromise. After a while he followed Julia back up, he saw the girl just before she vanished behind the attic floor.

Julia had arrived in the attic and stopped to understand what exactly she was seeing. Confused but also amazed at how the lines were changing; a creeping green slowly overtaking red.

"So... how much have you thought about?" Julia asked, folding her arms with a neutral look "because I'm not sure how long I'll be able to hide from people."

Zephyr looked up slowly, tilting his head in question.

"There's a doppelgänger monster taking your place in tormenting me," she said, still thinking back on how she might have looked to the kids "made me look like the real monster because I couldn't keep my cool."

"The one who calls themselves Doppler..." Zephyr whispered.

Julia froze, looking at him with interest "you know 'em?"

A scoff of distaste "annoying pest. They were a candidate for MoonJumper's cause." Zephyr looked at the girl, who can tell she was agreeing with the part of 'most annoying'. "They had just broken out of their seal when the demon found out about it. The changeling caught wind and has been hidden ever since."

"Until I saw them on the train..." Julia mumbled out, then looked at the Zephyr to do a retake of what he just said: "I'm sorry, did you say seal-?"

"Of course, quiet the small one. Not as luxurious of a 'home' as mine." There was that joking tone of his. Bitter, but you could tell he was having fun poking at would be a bee's nest. "The best thing would be to seal them back where they belong. In a vase."

"A... vase?" Julia looked at him questioning the property of the containment "shouldn't it be something more... sturdier?"

Zephyr chuckled "it's not about the frailness of the container, it about how strong the sealer is." He pointed out, managing to move a single finger "It seems the previous 'exorcist' was just a fledgling. Not knowing what to do. A quick but terrible job."

"You really... know a lot about this" Julia mumbled.

"Because I know how it feels," Zephyr stated.

"Right..." Julia scratched the back of her head, a little awkward.

The room was quiet for now, Julia slid down the wall to sit on the ground. She wasn't sure what to do, and she didn't want Zephyr to rush for his answer. She was sure as hell didn't want him to start killing things when he gets free either.

"Diamond child..." Julia looked up at him, a curious gaze "do you... are your intentions true? Do you honestly wish to give Zephyr a second chance?"

"I do," she simply said, "and my offer of being family still stands even if you don't want to help me." She looked at her hands "I'll just have to figure things out slowly."

"Why not ask MoonJumper? Or that other spectator? The one who rules the forest." Zephyr asked her, then asked "or perhaps your dear doctor of Hearts? I'm sure he's read a few books about magic..."

Julia gripped the seems of her clothing, a pained face as she held on tighter to it. "MoonJumper left to go visit someone important, but that was a long while ago." She could feel Zephyr focusing on her "Gabriele... I don't..." she chocked a bit, trying to stop her voice from cracking "He's missing. There was a fire at the studio... and all I found was his hat."

It had to have been Doppler, no one else would attempt an attack on him otherwise.

he whispered something out that Julia couldn't quite hear, but then he raised his voice for her to listen to "This feeling that you have...? Was how I felt for as long as I can remember." Twitching his hands for a moment, "perhaps... perhaps we should alter this deal of yours?"

Still feeling a little torn up, Julia focused on him. She waited to hear what he had to say, interested in what he could suggest; hopefully, it was something Julia could agree on.

It took him a while to think about how to properly word his sentence; what he wanted to do in return for what she has offered. A personal desire; a spark lit up in him "let me have one last fight..." he looked at Julia dead in the eyes. "Our last had ended abruptly when the doubling coward ran away."

Zephyr didn't need to tell her he got into a fight with them. Julia could piece together that the recruitment didn't go as planned... which probably started the fight in the first place. Quite honestly, if it's against the doppelgänger, Julia shouldn't have any problems with it.

They had It coming.

Being okay with these terms and a smile, Julia stood up with her hand outstretched. Shockingly, as if on queue, the strings that had ensnared the mad jester turned fully green and snapped like they had been frozen. It caught the two off guard as they watched the pieces fall to the ground.

Allen could be heard quickly climbing up the steps with heavy stomping feet. Quickly breathing as he reached the top, he watched the two look back at each other finally clasping hands. Some hope and shine returned to his eyes.

"As promised, I'll play your little game of 'family' if... you will allow me to cut some frayed ends," Zephyr said, feeling relief that he was able to stretch.

"It's not a game Zephyr, I mean it." Julia shot him a face "you help me, and I'll help you. As long as it doesn't involve murder or anything related to that topic." She quickly added.

* * *

"Found anything yet, darling?" DJ asked, looking over his shoulder to see his rival looking at a lower shelf.

The two birds had taken a rare time off to go researching at a library. Too many times did they almost get caught looking at certain things back at the studio. DJ had to keep explaining that he was looking things up for a new movie in mind; thankfully the doppelgänger and a few of the staff believed him.

Since the monsters seemed to be drawn to the studio anyway, which was still odd, they thought it'd be a better idea to get out of there. So, the library they went, looking at the old section of books about the supernatural and possible things that can get rid of the monster that currently resides in their movie studio.

"I'm a train conductor, nae an exorcist; nae completely sure wot I'm tryin ta find." He mumbled, looking still.

There was a moment, Grooves shuffled through some books, taking them out and looking at them before placing them back.

He then had a thought.

"Why don't we just go to that Snatcher fellow, the one who's a ghost...?" He fully turned around this time, making the Conductor get up and look at him. "I mean, he's fairly strong, no doubt he can remove them with ease."

The Conductor had already thought about that, "honestly speekin, I'd rather nae sell me soul for something we can do ourselves." He stubbornly said, glaring at the penguin. "Wot if given our souls up takes away our ability to make movies from the heart? Nae takin a peckin chance laddie."

He had a point there, what if there were consequences? DJ hummed in thought once more before going back to work. They had to work fast, either way, taking a trip to the forest would take a few days.

They could only hope that they'll find something in time.

* * *

Julia had woken up, calm, collected; she turned to the locked box. She never did ask how to open it. It was a strong type of magic placed by Moon, but... she wasn't sure how to disarm it. Getting closer to said box, she looked at it intently before sitting down in front and fully inspecting it again.

With a tap of her hand on one of the chains, it snapped instantly. Almost disintegrated. Julia took in a sharp take for air, it had surprised her greatly; it left her stunned.

"Uh... don't think that was supposed to happen." She mumbled to herself, as she placed both hands on the lid and unlocked it. With a shove, it opened with a loud creaking sound like the hinges hadn't been oiled in years!

That was probably the case.

Inside she found just what she was expecting; Zephyr in pieces. Was he still... awake? Getting in closer to see if that were true not resulted in getting screamed at!

"Ah!" Julia shrieked out as she fell backward.

She could hear Zephyr laughing at her; he did that on purpose!

"Zephyr, you jack-wagon!" She kicked the box while she was still lying on the floor.

"Zephyr apologizes, the diamond child made herself an easy target!" He laughed again, enjoying his freedom for the most part. "But Zephyr is unsure how to put himself together now without the puppeteer's magic..."

"I could..." she slowly got up and dusted herself off "Give you a hand or two-" chuckling to herself as she grabbed his arms and looked at him.

"So that is how you wish to play, is it?" Zephyr said; Julia could feel the playful air about him now.

It was... a different take than the normal, death aura he held. Julia sort of likes this... granted, it'll take a lot of time to get used to the fact that Zephyr is free now and is not trying to kill her, which she still needs to remind herself of.

"I mean, I'd say pull yourself together, but that's not possible-" that's joke number two, how far can she go?

"Hush! Zephyr is trying to think of a pun!" He hissed out, thinking.

"Hey man, don't lose your head over it-" she couldn't keep a straight face after she finally pulled his head out of the box, a huge grin plastered on her face. Julia remembers when she made her first joke in this world- Lynn's face was glorious.

"Zephyr now has some respect for the diamond child, little for now, but it is there..." he whispered, looking at her.

Getting back to her task, the last parts that were taken out were his legs and finally torso, which had been bisected. Julia saw how many pieces he was cut into, but this was ridiculous up close. Some of the stuffing had fallen out and she did her best to line him up on the ground.

It seemed he really can't move when in so many pieces, normally Gabriele could still move even when his head was taken off. Guess you can only contact a certain amount of decapitated limbs... that's a thought.

"Right... try not to twitch much, Gabriele you guys still feel pain and such." Julia looked at Zephyr.

She could tell he was glancing at her, Zephyr had gone quiet for the moment. That worried her, but perhaps she'll be able to focus.


	29. Confront your fears

**(Chapter Twenty Nine: Confront your fears)**

The work was finally done, Zephyr was back in one piece, as nervous as that made Julia. She was known for having faith in others despite not knowing was the outcome might be. Sometimes she wonders what her life would be like if she never puts her trust into anyone.

She'd still be alone, but would it have saved her the bullying in her youth? Perhaps, or perhaps not. She sighed to herself, looking at the doll, who still hadn't said a word since being put back together.

The jester sat up slowly, moving his arms carefully, and attempted to move his hands and fingers. It was odd to him, MoonJumper never repaired him with his strings before, he always had to take matters into his own hands sometimes. However this? This felt... amazing! Almost like the strings made him feel... stronger. Her energy was miraculous, almost like it overpowered the demon's energy.

That must have been it though, she broke him free, she was the one who got him out of that box. By herself intentionally or not. Though, now that he was free, now that he can feel the magical energy around him again... he could finally sense something that wasn't there before...

The diamond child was right when she said she needed help, but... help was nothing he can give. No... it was wrong it felt off... it felt dangerous.

"Julia..." this voice caught the woman's attention.

"Allen...?" She inquired, it was odd hearing his voice outside the dream. But.. he could speak out now. Why was that?

"Zephyr is... Zephyr is scared." He said, "we sensed something... nothing good." He pointed to her center, where her soul would be. Julia looked down then up at him, Allen was unable to give any facial emotions but he sounded... distraught... sad. "Your soul it's... you..."

He seemed to be having trouble saying when he needed to say.

She grabbed his hand, looking at him with a straight face. "Come on, you can say it. Don't leave me hanging like this." She calmly said.

With a sigh, Allen looked down to steel himself, unsure how she'll take the sudden news "You're... you're dying."

It took her a moment, but she laughed! She wasn't taking seriously at all! The girl rubbed the side of her face and looked at him, calming down "I've heard that one before, it's probably another dimensional shift again, its been happening! You don't have to worry about that." She told him with a smile.

But he grabbed her shoulders. His aura dampening her joyful outburst.

"Child. You are dying. This is not something to laugh about!" He yelled at her, making her stand up with him. "Your 'magic' that you said was a mutation? Is a byproduct just like us!" Zephyr then shifted back, tapping her forehead rather roughly, making Julia flinch back "except the diamond has no outlet like Zephyr does! No, no! You're magic will burn you up! Up, up and away like ashes!"

"Nothing will be left of you." Allen somberly said.

Julia was in a state of shock now. Was... was that why she was losing control? Because her whole being can't comprehend the pain..? No proper outlet, so she lashes out at people?

Julia couldn't properly understand, she was 'really' dying? She started to hyperventilate, hands placed on her head. She's going to die? "When? How long do I have? Will it hurt!?"

She panicked, grabbing onto the shirt on Zephyr. Julia whimpered at him "I thought the charms were supposed to keep me from burning out!?" Had Gabriele misinformed her?

"If you were naturally gifted, yes... these charms would assist you in your learnings..." Allen grabbed her hands, carefully removing them off himself "but there is a reason non-magic users are incapable of learning magic... the power is just too much for their body. I'm sorry."

Just like anyone who seemed to come into contact with MoonJumper always has something terrible happening to them. Gabriele lost his body, Allen lost his mind and body, Julia thought she was lucky but in reality, her life was slowly draining away as well. She always thought she'd die one day... but Julia never assumed it would be her adopted father who'd cause a possibility.

But what good would crying and panicking do for her? It won't stop the process of it happening, it never had. Taking slow deep breaths, she grabbed onto his hands, she wasn't going to continue like this. She had to keep going.

Keep going.

People still need her. People still love her. She's not going to just curl up and wait for it... not anymore at least.

But breaking the news will be hard...

"We keep this... between us for now, okay?" She looked up at Zephyr, Allen... whoever was in control now. "I'll be the one to break this news... but I'll need some time."

"Do as you must..." Allen said, tilting his head. He then added "but on the bright side... people with green magical energy are known to be incredibly lucky. At least you have that."

Julia thought to herself, in retrospect, that would explain every near-life experience.

* * *

"Lassie! What're ya doin here?" The Conductor held a book close to his chest, looking as Melody and shortly Bonnie calm walking up to him.

Both he and Grooves were about to walk into the studio to prepare. They had found something that might work, at the most, keep Doppler in place for a while.

"We... we can't find Julia anywhere... it's like she..." Melody looked down, saddened.

"Like she just vanished from reality," Bonnie added, not realizing the irony of that saying.

After the whole moment finally calmed down, the children felt bad for chasing down Julia. They were scared and they couldn't think properly. Melody found it to be a habit of trying to fight her way out when things went south. Her fight instincts had kicked in when she saw Julia lose it.

Now though, when she thinks about it, Julia knows how she fights, the woman knows how hard she can hit. She was just as scared as the children and when she needed help the most... they ran her off.

"Well, I'm sure the tall lass will come around... sure she's been missin fer a few.. days now." The Conductor said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "But this is Julia were talkin about. She's nae goin to stay down ferever."

"Once she has a calm mind again darlin, she'll be back." Grooves added in, still nervous that Julia might not show back up again, but he couldn't tell that to the kids.

The children seemed to light up just a little in hearing this. The thought of her coming back so that they could apologize gave them some hope.

"But lass... ya know that... Doppler is no good right?" He said whispering, looking around. It was true he didn't want the girls getting involved, but perhaps they could help them since Julia wasn't around. They certainly planned on doing this today, they had called everyone not to come into work for at least three days until further notice.

Some lie they came up with about a rat infestation and not wanting the cast members to be around while someone gassed the place. It was a thing that made Doppler even more suspicious of the two directors. No doubt the moment they walk through those doors with the children, the doppelgänger will be catching on.

"We... understand that..." Melody nodded, they know the monster was trying to get under their skin. They succeeded in doing that. "If you need help, well help."

The two directors nodded, finally stepping inside. It was broad daylight, but it was odd seeing the place empty. Not as spooky as it was during the night when the Conductor's fight took place, but a close second.

Now there was a real monster on the loose.

The children and the directors were prepared.

* * *

The group hadn't seen Doppler yet, nor heard anything. It was quite... but they took that time to prepare. With ink, they drew almost unnoticeable symbols on the walls and floors that created invisible barriers, or so the book says. They created a maze to a certain location... the perfect battle area.

The same place Julia was stabbed.

Only the blood was gone and the place was more open. The bleachers gone, however, the stage still stands. All three besides Bonnie had an air of dread, they remembered what had happened down here.

None of them thought they'd ever come down here again.

The two girls stood guard while the Conductor was drawing a larger circle with smaller symbols used for a stun spell until they could find a proper way to get rid of the doppelgänger. Grooves leaned off the stage and watched, they were finally putting their plan into motion. He still felt bad that he was the one who started this mess in the first place.

Guess He and the old conductor are even now for causing disasters.

In the shadows, a figure slinked around, just out of view. The group was unaware of being watched, as the Conductor continued drawing the unfinished drawing. A faint creaking made Melody's eyes shift around, then finally turning around and looking up with a gasp!

Doppler sprung from the ceiling and landed on the Conductor, shuffling around and knocking the ink away. The two tumbled and shoved each other around trying to get the other off. It kept going until the group wasn't sure who was who anymore.

Doppler had changed into the Conductor.

"Ey! Wot the peck!?" The first Conductor punching the other off

"Oh, nea one frauds the Conductor, laddie." The other Conductor said, as they both pulled up their sleeves and proceeded to duke it out.

The three were confused, they didn't want to hit anyone in case they accidentally hit the real Conductor. Though they couldn't just sit here and watch them fight it out! Could they?

"Lassie! Don't be afraid ta hit us!" The one Conductor yelled out, proceeding to weave to the right and uppercutting the other in the chin. "I can take a hit, ya know?!"

The second Conductor pulled out a knife and quickly slashed the other's suit. "That's exactly what the changer would want! Don't come to close, lass!"

The children were torn, looking left and right, no differences seems to be apparent with the two birds. Though just a Melody was about to take action, a loud tapping was heard. Everyone stopped and looked to the stage. There Julia stood, hat obscuring her face and she tapped her bat once again down on the hard wooden elevated floor.

"Julia!" Both Melody and Bonnie yelled out

"Darling! You're back!" Grooves called out, not sure if he was believing anything anymore.

The tall woman quickly looked up, eyes shaded by her hat but you could see a crazed hint in them. A smile that was so wide it sent unsettling shivers down everyone's spines. In the moment of the pause she created, everyone found Julia speeding past Grooves, pass the first Conductor, and smashing her bat directly into the second Conductor.

The hit made Doppler change back into their original form and was sent flying. Hitting doors of the locked Elevator, Doppler groaned out holding their head. Though the hit didn't keep them down for long.

"How did ya-?" The doppelgänger was about to ask when Julia laughed out. A lunatic laugh escaped her and her voice didn't sound like her own at all!

"Oh, what joy, joy! we meet again you slithering snake!" The figure of Julia slowly dissolved into the jester, making Melody gasp in panic. "Or have you forgotten that we too can wear a mask? No, no- you stole that ability from us! You stole our face!"

"Hey, hey now- it's uh... It's nice ta see ya again-" Doppler slowly stood up, "look here, I'm making use of your changing abilities... with my voice mimicry."

Zephyr floated closer, a clear desire to murder this imposter "Your success comes not of your own but others. Zephyr has never met anyone as lazy such as yourself. No showmanship, no fun. Boring, boring!" He twirled around, laughing.

"Look here! I may play with my food, but in the end, that's what it's about- food!" Doppler pointed out, "I ain't no sick peck who torture people until they take their own lives- I end it quickly."

"Yes, but Zephyr does not need to feed on the living or dead; You struggle to keep yourself alive like the parasite you are." Zephyr point back, growling out.

"I. am. Not. A PARASITE!" Doppler roared out, charging at the jester.

Zephyr swung around, throwing an arm in the air like he was matador dodging a bull "Olé! Such a burning spirit now. What has changed, Zephyr wonders?"

Doppler didn't reply, talking with this doll was not going to get him anywhere. They could try and leave through an air vent, but being called a parasite tugged at something they thought they had forgotten along time ago.

The Doppelgänger spun around and shot out his arms like elastic, grabbing onto Zephyr's arms and holding him in place. They launched themselves and landed a hit; they both flew back and continued the fight.

Melody was at a loss for words, why was Zephyr here, how did he get here? Things got too heated and Melody seem to not understand anything at all. Conductor and Grooves were also confused, but glad that someone else was fighting alongside them; they hadn't heard anything about this guy yet.

"Right-! The circle!" The Conductor snapped his finger, about to rush to the center of the fight. Only stopped when a hand grabbed his torn shoulder of his suit.

Everyone quickly looked around, they saw Julia who had a relieved smile on her face. Tired, but relieved. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. Let me handle it."

They could believe it, this time it was her.

"Julia-" Melody said, but Julia walked away and picked up the fallen brush and spilled ink.

"Not now kiddo, when this is over... then we can talk." Julia threw a kind smile over at her, Melody felt herself rip for ever thinking that Julia would harm anyone on purpose.

"I'm sorry." She muttered as she watches the brush glow green in Julia's hand.

As the brush emitted an aura, she continued the drawing, but wiped away a few symbols and replaced them with different ones. Allen had made sure she understood the proper way to activate a sealing spell. Once she was done, she pulled out a small jar, ceramic and beautiful. Blue floral patterns decorated the stark white figure.

Doppler was a jack ass, be if they were going to be sealed permanently... might as well give them a nice looking pot. A white slip of paper was taken out that had similar writing as the circular she stood in, Julia held it in a place like it was a lid.

Meanwhile, Zephyr pulled out one of his knives and slammed it into Doppler's shoulder. A symbol on the blade reacted and shot a wave of pain throughout the doppelgänger's body. They convulsed for a moment before realizing that they couldn't move shortly after.

Familiar chanting could be heard but Doppler couldn't move. However, the voice was even more familiar and he started to panic when he realized what exactly was happening "Wait, wait- wait! C'mon doll! Don't do this! Don't side with this lunatic-!"

The Doppelgänger tried to move, tried to struggle, and convince Julia not to go through with it "whatever he promised, I could do _better!_ I swear!" No response, Julia continued to chant out.

"My, my- you must have made the diamond child _incredibly_ mad." Zephyr chuckled, enjoying watching the lazy monster panic and squirm. "Even she doesn't hate us that much!"

"Doll- Dolly! Julia, come on!" He pleaded one last time "please don't put me back in a jar!"

The chanting had finished, and suddenly the jar turned into a vacuum, sucking up its intended target. With a final shout, Doppler was gone, sealed away tight at the paper latched over the lid like unremovable glue was applied. The woman held onto the jar, looking at it with a glare.

"I gave you a chance to run, back on the train." The girl pointed out "I gave you a chance to think, yet you came after me again; you came after my friends... my family." She held the jar close, unsure if Doppler could hear her "You fuck with them, and you've lost all form of trust. I'm used to being messed with, that was my life. But no one. Hurts. My. Family."

With a huff, she smiled, looking over at Zephyr who gave her a head tilt. "We did it!" She held her hands in the air, one still holding the jar. "That was... relatively easy- oddly easy actually."

"Not much of a boss fight if you ask me." Bonnie kicked her foot and knocked away rubble "kind of disappointing."

Julia laughed as she started to head for the crazy jester, she was planning on giving him the jar for safekeeping until... something unexpected happened. Clumsy as she was, she tripped over debris, falling as the sealed jar fell out of her grip.

They weren't greeted with a smash of ceramics however, not the seal wouldn't allow the pot to break. What were the odds of a portal opening up and swallowing the jar into the dimensional rift? Still flat on her stomach, Julia stared off slack-jawed. She cried out in panic as she soon realized what exactly happened.

"No, no, no!" She tried to get up and run for the portal, but it closed before she could keep it open. "No! Come back!"

Zephyr however was losing his already broken mind with laughter. It was rather comedic with Julia's reaction and the sudden change in her personality. One moment she was given a rather, dare he say, badass moment, to a rather fumbling situation.

"Well! They're the multiverse's problem now!" Zephyr said as he continued to laugh loudly.

"I feel really bad now-" Julia mumbled.

"What is going on!?" Melody yelled, stomping on the ground with her foot. Everyone went silent as she pointed at Zephyr "wasn't he sealed away!? Why is he here? Aren't you guys enemies?!"

Julia stood up, she brushed the dust off with a sigh, "it's uh... I-" Julia doesn't have a good explanation, at least not one that Melody would want to hear.

"Hello, hello! Do not fret hat child, Zephyr is not here to viciously attack the diamond-!" A charge shot from Melody's umbrella zipped past him, making a shriek escape him. "You prove to be ever yet dangerous!" He yelled out with a panicked voice.

"Melody, hold on!" Julia shot forward and held her umbrella down, "It's okay! Really! Let's... let's just get back to the ship, okay?" Melody looked up at her, skeptic, reluctantly decided to hear her out properly. She owed her that.

"Well, eh... guess we'll take the time to... clean the place." The Conductor said, scratching his head. He was rather confused, as well as disappointed just like Bonnie. They had this whole deal all planned out only for it to not be used. Or helpful.

"If we hurry we could... uh. Clean the paint off the walls and floor before they dry-" Grooves pointed out. More confused than anything, but happy it was finally over.

"Hey... sorry, I messed up your casting for the movie, DJ..." Julia frowned at him, a little upset.

"It's fine darlin', Conductor found out that this thing was a real menace..." he pointed out, softly smiling at her "Honestly, I'm glad they're gone instead of my crew... thank you, Julia."

With that done and over with, the children, Julia and Zephyr split ways with the directors for now. While the birds attempted to clean the place up, The other group went topside so that they could settle with a proper explanation as to why the crazy jester had been released. Julia had gone and done something crazy yet again, and Melody wasn't sure it was a good thing.

It was nice being on the ship again, no longer sleeping on the grass and dirt. Once she was safe, however, she noticed just how... drained she was. Taking a seat down, Julia held her head. The pain was back. Perhaps teleporting, then using the rest of her energy into seal away a being wasn't the best action... but a needed one.

It was like... water pressure. That's what it felt like. Like Julia was drowning in water, and she knows how that feels... happed to her twice now for a proper comparison.

Zephyr explained that her magical energy was like a fire, it will simmer out for a moment while she used it, but the coals are still hot and will always reignite. To put it simply, wind fanning a flame. It'll flicker for a moment but come back stronger.

_Julia just wants to sleep._


	30. Safe and Souns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So! I saved this chapter until I was done with the next one. The reason behind this is because from here on out things might or definitely will get dark from here. I will put up a warning when the time comes, but this will be an early one for slight blood in this chapter. If you are uncomfortable with blood and the likes, I would suggest not going any further unless you are completely alright and or curious about how this story will end.
> 
> After these two chapters are posted, it will be metro time.

**(Chapter Thirty: Safe and Sound)**

Julia, Melody, and Bonnie sat down in the kitchen, hot drinks, and a conversation about why exactly the woman had let Zephyr free. Meanwhile, the said person was messing around with various objects in the kitchen.

The man had only seen sand, guns, trains, and other things of the sort. A microwave and a refrigerator confused him very much. Especially the refrigerator and it's light.

"So he's just... a victim like Gabriele?" Melody whispered, sneaking a glance over at the jester who kept opening and closing the door.

"Yeah, he's... just a little mess up right now." Julia looked into her drink, bot wanting to tell the child his full story. "I want to help him, give him some sort of closure? Let him know he doesn't have to fight or kill anymore."

The hatted child hummed, "Don't bite off more then you can handle Julia..." the melody wondered "how did you even find us anyways? How did you know we were in the studio's basement?"

The woman took a sip of her drink and shrugged, "we... made our way back into the studio and found the runes both Conductor and DJ drew everywhere..." she explained, "Zephyr said they were locator related."

Which meant the directors accidentally lead Doppler right to them. The monster just... took a different way around.

Bonnie got up and from the table to see if she could get Zephyr to stop opening the refrigerator door while the two talked.

"Hey- stop that." The girl grabbed the end of his shirt, making the jester look down at her "there's a switch that controls the light when the door closes- it's not magic."

Hearing this, he tilted his head then looked back at the open fridge before closing it again. "Zephyr is fascinated..."

"Well, if you think that's cool, wit till you see a tv..." the bow child said, grabbing his hand and taking him to the main hub of the ship.

Before the child had vanished behind the door with Zephyr, she turned around to give a thumbs-up as if saying 'your welcome', Julia chuckled at this.

"If Zephyr ends up breaking your tv, I'm so sorry..." rubbing her forehead, Julia weakly smiled.

Melody took notice and gave her a worried look. The only time when she smiled like this was when she was sad, or holding onto something she didn't want her to know. Being curious, the hatted child was about to ask when a scream and some commotion started grabbing their attention.

Julia was the first to shoot out of her chair knocking it over in her hurry. The woman was prepared for something to happen, but she didn't expect this soon. She hasn't recovered fully yet. But then again... maybe she shouldn't.

Heading through the push doors of the kitchen, Julia froze at what she saw before her. Zephyr held on rather tightly to Bonnie while... both MoonJumper and Gabriele stared him down, ready for a fight.

"Zephyr but her down!" Julia shouted, angry that he was attempting to use Bonnie as a hostage.

"The demon will not harm us if we hold her!" Zephyr shouted back in a panic, looking at her. "He does not want to harm the child."

She then realized that Bonnie wasn't actually in pain, or cringing, more surprised than anything. Good... he hadn't harmed her. Yet.

Julia slowly approached him, "Hey, it's alright, just put her down and we can all talk."

"Julia get away from him!" MoonJumper shouted at her, shooting a string out to pull her away.

The woman's reflexes were getting more spot-on as she threw up a barrier to prevent getting grabbed, everyone turned to her as she incased both herself and Zephyr, who was still holding Bonnie, in a green box to protect themselves from all angles. Mostly to protect Zephyr, however.

"Julia! What are you doing!?" MoonJumper came forth and banged on the walls... he... he couldn't go through them. He stopped when Julia gave him a look he hadn't seen in a while. A long while.

It was hate.

Well, to him he saw hate, Julia herself was just angry and upset. She knew it wasn't his fault for being scared, but it was his fault for making Zephyr the way he was now. Julia was just tired of all the problems that had followed her father's wake, she felt like she was the only one who could fix them.

Honestly, she probably _was_ the only one who can fix them.

"Julia, lower your barrier now!" MoonJumper pleaded, scared that she might get hurt.

"I will not." She calmly said, looking at him. "Not until everyone calms down. Hear me out."

"How can I calm down when Zephyr has broken free?!" He pointed at the crazy jester, making Zephyr slink back slightly. "He has escaped a seal that no one should have been able to open!"

"He didn't escape! I set him free!" She gritted her teeth. Julia was planning that her father would, without a doubt, be furious. "Because I am sick and tired of you just hiding your problems away like they never happened" she looked at him dead in the eyes "not even thinking that maybe hiding away those problems will create more problems until nothing can hold then back!"

Zephyr looked at Julia, grip loosened on Bonnie; A problem was he? But... he kept listening to Julia's rant.

"How dare you take advantage of Allen, how dare you hide Zephyr away and treated him like you did! He was basically your son! You created him!" Julia shouted back, started to breathe heavily. "Things would have been different if you treated him like a person!"

Zephyr was still too scared to yell at MoonJumper for what he's done, Julia was going to take it upon herself since she was so used to arguing and yelling at him now.

Something stirred within doll hearing someone... worry about him though. To care about him. These emotions... It was strange; completely alien to Zephyr.

"I... I saw what you did." Julia said in a low voice. It was like the room grew cold as MoonJumper stopped moving.

Moon floated there, hands slowly sliding down the green see-through wall, thinking and remembering that name, remembering what he had done "Allen... how did- who..." MoonJumper was trying to ask, but eventually said "Allen is gone, Julia."

"No dad, he's alive, he's still here." She pointed out, almost pleaded quietly. "He's still here..."

MoonJumper looked over at Zephyr, who had long since let go of Bonnie, the child curiously looked up at him as the man seemed to contemplate what to do. Eventually, Zephyr let go of his body for while.

Shortly after, a different voice greeted everyone "So... What Julia said was true. You have changed." Allen finally called out.

The different voice made MoonJumper back away from the barrier slightly, it made Gabriele intrigued that there was a voice behind the madness and a smile from Julia who finally had some proof.

"Though you have changed, you still can't make proper decisions it seems." Allen pointed out "always quick to smash something down when a bad situation arises. Though, I don't fully blame you for how we have been." Sighing, Allen looked over at Julia "maybe you and I both should take a page, or a few, from your daughter. She seems to want to listen before leaping."

Arms folded behind his back, he continued, noticing that the woman was starting to falter with her barrier slightly "We can both agree that our action was... not the best. But that's that. There's no going back." He said regretfully. "I know my mistakes, and I've come to terms with them for some time now. It was all I could do, almost to the point that I've given up feeling anything."

He placed a hand on Julia and looked at MoonJumper with a face that was not his any longer, "I, and I mean myself... had called out for help and Julia is graciously giving us a second chance... despite Zephyr's torment towards her."

"As she does," Gabriele chuckled, walking over to the barrier now, placing a hand where she is "...must you always do crazy things, my love?"

Julia just smiled, than taking notice that Button was peaceful sleeping in his other arm. Eyes drooping slightly, Julia lowered the barrier, unable to keep it up.

"I'll take responsibility for them, I want to help them," Julia whispered to Gabriele as she placed her head on his shoulder. "He's done a lot, and I'm still upset with it, but he also suffered as well."

"I understand." Gabriele softly said, "even if I may not like it at first, I will stand beside your decisions, they always seem to work in the end someway or another..."

"...thank you..." Julia smiled at him even though he couldn't see it "...and welcome home."

"It's... good to be back," he said, feeling rather giddy to have someone say that. To have a home to go back too.

As the two held each other for a moment, both MoonJumper and Allen watched them. Allen felt a ping of sadness from the way she and the doctor interacted, he... still misses Delilah, but as he said... he's come to terms with it.

"Your daughter has us under her watch, and I'll do my best to... keep Zephyr's murderous intentions down..." Allen said, turning to the puppeteer "take note, I am no longer under your power, have some faith that Julia can help us... we can be helped."

"You... really are alive..." MoonJumper muttered, still in shock that Allen had been alive all this time, just barely. With a sigh, MoonJumper looked back to Julia who seems to be going in and out of consciousness.

He doesn't need to fight now, not when he's finally back with Julia. He doesn't need her yelling at him when she was worried sick about him and Gabriele. "I guess I shouldn't put up an argument, it's not the first time she has tried to fix something I've caused..." MoonJumper said, looking at him "I will have faith; I always have faith in Julia. I just worry about her..."

"You should know, she's stronger then you think. After all, she disintegrated a spell of yours by accident." Allen quietly said, looking at Moon's still surprised face. "Let her rest now, though. Everyone here has been through much today."

Gabriele steadied Julia and helped her stand straight, looking over at the group "what of Doppler? Aren't they still roaming the studio?"

"Already taken care of..." Bonnie pipped up, looking at him "Zephyr fought him off and Julia sealed them away... and she accidentally dropped them into a multiverses portal...?"

"There are a few things we need to inform you guys about..." Melody also let herself known over by the railing. "But... I do think you guys should rest first..."

* * *

After everything had finally calmed down, Gabriele and Allen both assisted Julia into the attic where she and Gabriele had been staying. Allen and Zephyr were still amazed that they were in space, let alone the contraptions that filled this place. It was... too overwhelming.

"So, you're the man behind the crazy mind?" Gabriele said, gently placing Julia on the pile of pillows. She almost looked ill, and that worried him. "Never thought there was someone sane still in there."

Allen chuckled "yes, it is rather hard to believe... I'm surprised I hadn't waisted away sooner." He said, looking down at the woman. "I have her to thank for that... honestly, she makes me want to try again. To fight for something greater. Zephyr is still conflicted, however."

Julia smiled at one part of that, opening her eyes slightly. She was making a difference again and it made her happy. Made her feel useful. She liked helping people. She suddenly started coughing roughly into her hand and it didn't sound very good.

"Julia are you..." Gabriele froze, looking at her hand. There was blood on it. She was bleeding.

He didn't cry out, but his panic was clear when his normally still hands started shaking. Button had long since awoken and was exploring the ship with Bonnie's supervision thankfully. This was something children shouldn't see.

"What is the matter? Why have..?" He looked at her, she could feel pleading eyes needing an answer.

"I... I wasn't planning on telling you so soon..." Julia whimpered, feeling guilty for still holding in knowledge. She just wasn't ready yet, but Gabriele deserved to know. He waited patiently for her to continue. "I might have figured out why I'm such a nervous wreck lately... It has something to do with my magic. Doppler just made it more... apparent."

He sat there with Allen hovering over them, he waited for her to talk... and if she couldn't, the wizard will do his best to assist her.

Sighing, she got to the point like ripping off a bandage "I'm... I'm slowly dying, Gabe. Not now-" she held up her other hand to stop him before the panic started "I think I just used to much magic today- surprisingly, my eye wasn't hurting though..." however, the two guys have noticed it was glowing for while now underneath the eye patch.

"Is... is there a way to help..?" He quietly asked he was trying to be hopeful. He wondered if she was in any pain, just in case, he readied his healing badge to put her at ease. Gabriele also wondered if he could help internal wounds that weren't deep. By the looks of it, it wasn't much blood that came up.

"None that I know of, her magic will consume her over time, and I have no recollection if it can be stopped," Allen said, placing a hand on Gabriele's shoulder.

"Then... I won't stop until I find it." Gabriele then grabbed an old cloth to clean Julia's hand for the moment "If there's anything I've learned, it's to have hope. And if there's hope, there's a chance."

"You're... handling this a lot better then I thought you would," Julia mumbled, slightly confused.

The doctor hushed her and placed her hand down, "if it were me years previously, then yes, I would have been freaking out completely over this..." he swept her hair out of her eye "but, I'm a different me; I have you and I've learned that making a fuss won't solve everything."

"I'll help as well when I can," Allen said, nodding at them both. "Hopefully Zephyr will allow me to take control more often..."

"I appreciate that, thank you." Gabriele said towards the man, then down towards Julia "and you, you must rest now. No more moving unless you're turning in your sleep."

But Julia was already asleep.

"Good." He whispered, getting up slowly, then once more turning to Allen "then I guess... welcome to the family. We aren't perfect, be we care about each other. Do keep that in mind, if you can."

Allen watched Gabriele walk off to be briefed about what happened when he was gone, leaving the wizard alone with Julia. A moment passed before he sat down and just... rested. On his own. No one telling him what to do.

It felt nice.


	31. Feels like a Home

**(Chapter Thirty-One: Feels like a Home)**

_'Months had passed; so many things had happened since helping out DJ with his movie. Honestly, I was glad it was over and can assure you I'll never partake in another movie again;'_ Julia sat in her newly built house, scribbling away in a notebook.

 _'Things always happen in that studio when I'm in it. It was also hard trying to find a good effect or replacement for the monster since Doppler was taken care of.'_ Julia remembered suggesting that Zephyr could help out, but he said something about the camera stealing what was left if his souls and vanished for the remainder of the time.

The final time Julia set foot in dead bird studios was for the award show. All done up in a dress, it shocked a few folks. _'Gabriele was ecstatic that he was able to wear something other than his normal attire during the award show at the end of the season...'_

 _'Even after the trouble and finding terrible replacements... Grooves won the gold trophy.'_ Julia smiles fondly at the memories as she continued to write _'and surprisingly, the Conductor wasn't even mad. Hmm... almost nearly hit him on the head thinking he was the doppelgänger_ _instead.'._

' _Button had been adopted into the family as well, Gabriele was the one who decided to adopt her. Even though the horrific situation was over, My boyfriend and I felt bad just thinking about leaving her in the studio. So, she eventually came along for the ride.'_ Julia could hear the commotion of the children playing outside, finally back to what would be normal peace around here.

 _'Kero was happy about that.'_.

 _'On another note, the house me and the others will be permanently staying at had come along nicely.'_ When the house was completed, the woman just couldn't comprehend how nice it was. She had thanked Melody for the design.

And there she was, in her new living room space looking around the place. The first part of the house was mostly a living room, actually. The way in was a nice sliding glass door with drapes, a skinny window to the side of the door shining whatever light it was catching onto a soft couch, and another thicker size window on the other side of the glass door.

There was a place for a kitchen, but none of the electronics were implemented yet, so empty it will stay for now. They still weren't sure how to power the place. There was, however, a ladder that leads to a second floor that was mostly a catwalk around the main room but large enough to be a workspace for Julia. On the right side of her space, was another ladder that leads up to a deck on the side of the roof.

On the said second floor, Julia's workspace had a desk in front of two circular windows, one larger and one diagonally higher and smaller. A few stand up manikins next to the desk was for her new hobby. Julia had taken an interest in making clothing, nothing magical, she just liked making new bodies and styles for the minions ever since Button had chosen what she wanted to look like.

Kero's little gang had been the first ones to test with, they had given each other names like Cobalt, the minion who was stationed inside the manor and had taken a liking to Julia; Melon, Malone, and Piper who were the three minions that wanted Julia's hat when she first arrived in Subcon with Melody. It turns out that... Malone really does have a hat addiction.

On a few occasions, he'd ask her to make one for him.

She'd say the same thing every time: "I'm still learning."

The place was nice and lively despite it being in a dead forest that was still half-frozen and on fire.

But home it was. _Surprisingly._

Continuing with the thought of the house, there was a little rope bridge that leads to a second house that was designed to be the sleeping area. It had a loft where the actual bed would be, but the loft was propped up by stilts so that eventually Julia could make a pillow pile of her own. Melody had given her a few, as a "starter kit".

Julia just shook her head at that but smiled.

The bed area had only two windows, one faced the front and the other in a small room above the loft that will probably serve as an attic. A place Zephyr had been spending most of his time. He just found it... roomy. The small attic also had a deck, a door leading out to it. That was pretty much all there was to the house for now.

There was a calm peace about the place.

 _'Zephyr has been trying to readjust to reality and causality, the poor guy didn't know the majority of electronics that were in the world, so that's saying a lot.'_ Julia hummed as she wrote that down, face scrunched up in a frown _'we, and I mean Me, Melody, Bonnie, and Lynn tried to introduce him to the ocean and Mafia town... uh.. in the first few moments he tried to kill some.'_

 _'I had to stop him and his reasoning behind the attack was that "he was looking at us with threatful eyes" and I had to explain to Zephyr that's how they always look- poor goon now has a fear of clowns, jester and harlequins.'_ Julia shook her head, taking a moment to overlook her writing then kept going. _'Lynn tried to encourage him to scare more folks. I don't think taking him back to Mafia town is a good idea anymore.'_

_'And on a sadder note, there is a reason why I'm making this journal now. It's come to my attention that there is something really wrong with me. I thought I was going to be some sort of threat... a liability for many things, but it turns out that- it's not entirely my fault.'_

_'I'm losing control of myself, yes, but it's an after effect of absorbing magic that was never was mine to even begin with. I was never meant to have these gifts, but I used them anyway. It had proved to be more helpful over the toughest times I've been here.'_

_'I don't know when it will happen, but this journal with have my contingency plan. My Thoughts, and a possible goodbye. It seems bleak, I know, but I'm thinking this plan might just work...'_

Julia closed her journal and hid it away for now. Her plan will be written out once she had a better grip on the situation. The woman had been feeling much better over the course of months as they passed, but she could feel that something was still wrong with her. It felt different than the time when she was disappearing...

Almost like a mental count down, vague as it was.

True to Gabriele's word, he had been doing his best in finding books and figuring out different methods on how to channel magic without it horrifically killing the host. They've even tried making her a staff for better control but every time Julia was to pick it up, it would splinter into pieces.

With a sigh, and hand through her hair, Julia stood up from her spot. She gave the house one last look before leaving out the front door. Now that everything about the inside of the house was practically done, she'd have to get to work with the outside.

Just because Snatcher enjoys the dead scenery, doesn't me she has too. "I just hope the soil isn't too sterile." She mumbled to herself as she climbed down the rope ladder.

The children, that had been playing in front of the house not to long ago, had noticed that Julia finally came out to do stuff. With excitement, the group of six ran in her direction.

Kero and Button had latched onto the women while the four minions had started to run circles around her, all laughing and giggling. Julia smiled at all of them hugging the two that were currently climbing.

"Oi you lot, where's Gabriele?" She asked raising a brow, he said he'd be watching them earlier.

In the distance, you couldn't hear a faint 'here' as Julia turned her gaze to see him recuperating on the floor.

"They dog piled me..." he said, brushing off the dirt and sand.

Julia gave him an amusing look "Gabe, you're a titan of a man, how did these children manage that?"

"With Button as their leader, they've become quite a crafty little clan." Gabriele pointed out grabbing a scarf limbed child from Julia, making the smallest and apparently leader of the group burst out is more giggling. "She also _zapped me_."

"I zapped him!" You could hear the smile on her face as she held up her hands once Gabriele had a good grip on her.

"That's why you look fluffed up..." Julia held a hand to her mouth to hide her smile.

* * *

"Love, I honestly think you should let me do the heavy lifting..." Gabriele huffed as he carried a couple of stone slabs around. "I don't want you getting hurt."

"I'm perfectly fine, don't go sounding like MoonJumper when he's overly worried about me..." Julia stated as she made sure to carry the ones that she can handle.

The two had been rearranging the old stone slabs around their section of the forest to make a proper fenced-in area. Perhaps build a nice gateway with it. So far, there were two exits, one at the front and one to that side that led to the dock in the swamp.

"Besides, I need to do something distracting before Melody and Bonnie figure out where exactly the last bunch of Time Pieces will be." The women then huffed as she placed down a few more slabs. "Not sure what they're gonna do afterwords... probably leave back to their home planet."

"Is that really what it's about, or are you trying to forget about..." Gabriele glanced at the children who were digging in the dirt with tools "about your condition...?"

"...Maybe a little bit of both." She sadly smiled.

"And what of Zephyr, is he still up in our attic?" The doctor looked over to one part of the house and froze for a moment before going back to work.

Zephyr had been watching them the entire time from the balcony. Unmoving and rather unnerving to Gabriele. Sure, he still hasn't gotten used to him, but Zephyr surprisingly kept his promise about not murdering anyone or causing nightmares. The children also seem to be having a better time getting used to him, but they are still wary... except for Button.

She doesn't seem to be scared of him at all.

Julia looked up from her spot in the yard and yelled up to him "hey, you just wanna be a scarecrow, or are you going to come down and help?" The woman placed her hands on her hips as she watched Zephyr slowly making his way back inside the house.

"Hmm, Stubborn. Just like someone I know." Gabriele joked.

Julia huffed and turned around to get back to work.

Shortly Jumping with a yelp as she found Zephyr had quietly made his way down. "Oh! You... you actually came down!"

Zephyr gazed around, everyone's eyes on him. "Are... you making a garden?" He asked, turning back to Julia, who once again, went back to work.

"That's right," she said, giving Gabriele a look to stop him from staring "not sure how well things will grow here, but it's worth a shot to try."

Zephyr glanced over at the small plot the children have been digging, then glancing back over to the doctor and diamond child. The only time he had seen other plants were in a book he and Allen had seen long ago, even then, he wasn't quite sure where that book had come from.

Not too much diversity on a planet made out of mostly sand, and even less water. "Zephyr highly doubts you'll be able to grow any sun thriving vegetation..." but he tapped his chin in thought. This place was chock-full of magic, and plant life is still very much growing...

Even the part that's on fire, plants still seem to grow.

He tilted his head and looked over the surrounding area once more; With a small wave of his hand, he was able to conjure up something that stunned everyone.

In the radius of the house, glowing green plant life that was just overflowing. A small tree of white Angel's triumph to the right of the house, a few Hydrangeas in every possible color littered around, Bougainvillea vining across the unfinished stone fencing, and a small batch of coral red Chaenomeles to the left where the children had been digging.

Gabriele dropped the stone he was carrying in shock and awe as well as Julia who's brain nearly had a meltdown of seeing so much color in one place. The group of kids gasped and cheered looking at all the flowers they hadn't seen before.

Julia looked over at the jester, then attempted to touch a single plant. That only resulted in her hand fazing through the entire thing.

"Do not get too excited, this is merely an illusion..." he said with pride, listening to all disappointment from the children. "It's only a 'what if' scenario if you were to go along with your idea."

"Oh yeah? Well- how come this blueberry bush is real, huh!?" Button had pipped up and pointed out.

"Blueberry...? Zephyr did not conjure up-" the doll looked over towards the scarf limbed child and leveled himself with said bush she was standing next to.

A single paw was softly placed on his face as a head popped out.

"Hey- it's that Rough Patch." Kero pointed out.

* * *

"Melody, come in- you there?" A voice from the communications grabbed the hatted child's attention. Quickly, she answered the call and was immediately greeted by Timmy.

"There you are!" The boy with the blue marking said.

"What is it, Timmy? Normally you're not allowed to call unless it was urgent..." Melody tilted her head at the large screen.

Timmy shuffled around a few papers and stacks from a previous job he was given and looked up to see Bonnie giving him a smug face. Choose to ignore his friend's intentions to annoy him, he gathered his thoughts.

"A few things, mostly CEO related." He said, and the two girls froze up. Now that Timmy had both of their attention, he cleared his thought. "He wants an update on your progress with the leftover timepieces, and.. an audience with Julia soon."

"What-? Why?" Bonnie asked, heading over to stand next to Melody.

"Not sure, he wouldn't tell me," Timmy said, taking off his hat and scratching his head. "And if he refuses to tell me anything, it's something no one needs to know."

"That's very... disconcerting." Melody folded her arms with a worried face.

"Very..." Bonnie had the same look on her face as her friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter, It'll now be time for the Metro, strap up kiddos! Who'll lead the charge into the underground?


	32. Time to get ready!

**(Chapter Thirty-Two: Time to get ready!)**

Melody huffed to herself as she ran through some scanners, as well a Bonnie who went over the physical prints just to get a full idea where exactly this place was located. The past few days they've been trying to figure out the weak signals of the remaining timepiece, and figure out how to get to them.

"They just have to be underground..." Melody said, still going with that idea "maybe the timepiece fell through some gaps?"

"Or maybe something or someone took them under..." Bonnie said, giving her captain her thoughts. "With the stories you've told, I wouldn't doubt it."

Which would bring up a good question along with the few others that have been plaguing her mind; Just how long have they been down there? Was it just recent or has someone used them?

"And I still have at least three or so more of Snatcher's contracts to do..." Melody sighed, plopping her head down on the console.

The child had promised to return right away once all the remaining timepiece had been found, It would feel incomplete if she were to just drop her supernatural BFF's insane contracts. As hard as they were, she wanted to prove to him that she was as tough as always.

"Then... let me go! I deal with the retrieval!" Bonnie said a little too excited to go on her own mission.

"What? No!" Melody shot up and turned to give her friend a look "That's unknown territory, even I don't know what's there. It could be dangerous!"

Bonnie approach Melody in a hurry and hushed her with a glare "girl, we sunk a cruise ship together; are you saying that wasn't dangerous?"

The purple hatted girl shrinks her head into her shoulders at that memory "no, it was dangerous, but that was also an accident." She pointed out.

"We can handle ourselves, Melody..." Bonnie huffed out "and besides, I can always ask Julia to come along."

"Gabriele said she needs to take it easy, and honestly, I kind of agree with him." She knew Gabriele was also holding back information like Julia was, but it was still true. Her sister needs rest now; she deserves it. "Besides, she'll say yes anyway. She never says no." But then again, even she'll know this will be the last mission. Julia would probably want to be apart of it. Melody softly smiled to herself, remember how encouraging her older sister was during the final fight with Lynn.

"It'll be a simple in and out mission once we find the entrance! Don't worry, Captain!" Bonnie put a hand on her friend's shoulder in reassurance and snapped her out of the memory "and that way, you can finish your contracts."

"I still can't believe you gave up." Melody pointed out.

"Hey, look- not everyone is fueled by cosmetics. I like the way I look." Bonnie shrugged at her.

* * *

Gabriele sat in a bundle of books inside the house, he hadn't forgotten about trying to help his girlfriend with her serious condition, he wouldn't let himself to forget. Though, he does take breaks now and again so that Julia wouldn't get to worked up over him.

It's not like he needed sleep. But... the breaks are good for a mental breather.

Meanwhile outside, Julia had another situation at hand. The Rough Patches, the three from before, had made a reappearance. Only this time, the small one, who the woman had decided to name Blueberry, wouldn't leave.

The pink warrior, who Kero named Sakura Sam, was starting to lose his mind about how his charge was refusing to listen to him.

And the last one, the super-fast Rough Patch who was given the name Zoomie, was doing what he always does. Run around in circles until the commotion dies down.

"Whoah, hey- look..." Julia tried to calm down Sam, but the cat bush looked up to her and started yowling in distress and anger "okay, okay! I know! You want her to go home-"

He continued to yowl and then growled, talking to her in his own way while the Kero and Button watched with interest.

"But think of it this way! She'll still be safe here with us!" Julia points out, still not believing she was holding some sort a conversation "we'll take good care of her and you won't have to worry about losing her!"

Sam stopped and actually thought about that, the only reason why his job was hard was that Blueberry kept wandering off without a thought in her head. She also seemed really attached to this bipedal as well.

His people weren't ready to leave the cove just yet either... every moment he spent out here, something dangerous might happen back home. Sam has some respect for this bipedal and proved that she could be a worthy protector...

"Juli-! Uh..." Bonnie had arrived from the ship and hurried to the new residence to explain their findings, only to stop and see Julia talking to a plant...?

The pink bush turned around and glared at the child, not liking the new and unknown bipedal.

The bow child gasped "Kitty!" But Julia quickly stepped in between her and the Rough Patch before the child could make a move.

"Not a good idea to grab them," she whispered to Bonnie "trust me."

With a sigh, the girl got back to what she was originally here for "we found the place; the location where the last timepieces are." Bonnie adjusted herself, with a smile "Wanna have a bonding mission? Melody is a little busy."

"Oh! Oh! Can I come too!" Kero jumped up and down with a hand in the air, waving it around "please?! I wanna test out my ability, I've been getting better!" Kero ran off somewhere and came back with a small cylindrical container filled with swamp water.

Julia and Bonnie both looked at each other for a moment, in between the commotion the two Rough Patches ran off somewhere, then the woman and child looked back at Kero who started to demonstrate what he could do once he returned. One handheld the open container while the other one was manipulating the liquid inside.

A hand-formed and the boy made it wave at them, then placed it back in the cylinder. "See!?" He looked excited and happy with himself.

"Wait- your son is a water bender? Like the cartoon!?" Bonnie looked amazed.

"It's... hydrokinesis." Julia pointed, surprised that a few cartoons that she has seen were here in this reality. "And he can only control the swamp water-"

"For now!" Kero proudly smiled, "Snatcher said I'll be able to control water and plants separately when I get stronger!"

Julia stopped, thought for a moment, and then looked at her son "plants...?" She questioned.

"Well, yeah! Algae that grow in the swamp helps me control the water!" Kero tilted his head at Julia, still smiling.

"Algae?!" She held her hands up in a questioning manner and then looked out at the swamp. All she saw was bubbling thick purple liquid. Where were the algae?

Clearly, she should have spent more time learning more about Kero's ability.

"Uh... I mean, I guess you can come as long as Julia allows it-" Bonnie looked over at the perplexed woman who was still lost in thought. "Oh- and Juli," Julia snapped out of her little world and looked at the bow child. "Before I forget, the... the CEO of Time wants to talks with you as well."

Julia straightened up, but her face still had the same confused look. She remembered hearing about him, such an important person to Melody and Bonnie... why would he want to talk to her?

Putting her hand through her hair, Julia calmed down a little to get her thoughts back in order. "Alright, uh... just give me a moment before we head out-" the woman said, pointing back at the house "I got to go tell Gabriele and deliver something to Snatcher... which I'm assuming he's still on the ship?"

"Oh yeah." Bonnie nodded, crossing her arms with an unamused look.

"But can I come along!?" Kero asked once more.

Julia just sighed, then nodded, "fine, you can come along, bud." She then looked over at Button who had been watching the group's conversation "come on kiddo, you'll be in charge of Gabriele and making sure he doesn't overdo things."

The navy hooded clad child with purple and orange striped scarf limbs jumped with glee, she was going to be in charge. At least that's how she heard it. Running into Julia's arms the woman picked her up and climbed the rope ladder. Once inside, she dropped off Button and had a brief talk with Gabriele.

"Are you done arguing with the plant cat?" Gabriele chuckled at her as button came and plopped down in his lap

"God, you heard that? That thing can make noise, I'll tell you what." She smiled, then cleared her throat "I'm heading out on one last mission for the girls, then no more after that..."

Gabriele looked up about to protest but realized it probably won't stop her from heading out. He sighed, "as long as it's the last one, I guess I shouldn't complain..."

"That's right, and after that, I'm all yours!" She quickly pecked a kiss on his beak, making his stutter.

"J-Julia! Not when Button is here!" He called out watching her leave.

"It's just a kiss, boo!" She taunted, waving.

As Julia walked off, she could already hear Button hitting him with odd questions. She smiled to herself, even if she was dying, she was pretty lucky to meet these wonderful people.

She was lucky to meet MoonJumper, even if her problem was caused by him, to begin with; not on purpose, she would think. Even so, she could, and would never hate him.

After all. He was her father.

In the bedroom, she looked around; Julia was trying to remember just where she left her journal. She had recently finished a message within the book along with some memories- or to put it basically... her story. It was all apart of her plan.

Julia picked up the tan book, that she had named 'the contingency plan' all wrapped up in a green ribbon to prevent anyone else from opening it, only the person it was made for can see it's true contents. She had an extra page inside that would slide out; that was specifically for Snatcher. They were instructions in away.

"Hey, Zephyr- you still up there?" Julia called up to the attic, wondering if he was still... secluding himself.

There was no answer and the girl sighed, the jester just wasn't a sociable guy in reality, which was surprising. If he were, Zephyr probably would and could have killed many more- the thought made her shiver.

Just as she was about to turn away from the loft, the mad man poked his head out, looking at her from upside down.

"Hey there, buddy!" Julia chuckled at him "I'm... heading out for while. Not sure when I'll be back, but I wanted to let you know."

"The... the diamond child is leaving...?" Zephyr almost sounded sad to her. "Not knowing when you'll return is dangerous. Perhaps... Zephyr can come along?" There was that small tone of hope in his voice, Julia nearly missed it.

"Uhh..." Julia looked away nervously, thinking if letting him come along was a good idea or not. "I don't-"

"Zephyr is coming along with you." He announced, already standing next to her.

"...Okay." She slowly looked down, inwardly sighing.

* * *

"Do you have everything? Make sure you get food too!" Gabriele was fretting over Julia again, grabbing her and held her in a hug "I know this will be your last mission, but I still can't help but always worry about you."

Julia smiled at him as they both stood out in front of their house, Bonnie and Kero had already set off to the front of Snatcher's place while they gave the grownups some time to say goodbye. "I'd be surprised if you didn't; As much as I hate to see you worry, I always appreciate it." She said to him "and besides, Zephyr will be with me."

"That's what I'm worried about the most..." he whispered.

The two then pressed heads with one another but stopped short when Julia picked up a massive energy spike in the air. Gabriele tilted his head, as well as Zephyr who turned in a direction away from the two.

It felt familiar, almost like when reality started shifting again. There was a slight hope in her eyes as Julia ran off for the moment.

"Julia where are you going?" Gabriele called out.

"Just give me a moment!" Was all he heard in the distance.

Taking this time to speak with the jester, the doctor looked at him "I trust you won't cause Julia any trouble while you're both off, right?"

"As much as Zephyr hates to listen to rules, he'll be on his best behavior!" He mocks saluted at Gabriele, and if the plague doctor could lift a brow, he would. "Zephyr is just... interested in the outside world."

Gabriele just hummed at him, waiting for Julia to return.

Meanwhile, as she ran off, the suit-clad girl almost ran into someone, not realizing they were there. Well, she could feel them, but their energy hid them like a shadow. Kind of like... a cloaking devise?

It was a man the stood before her, a dark grey hoodie, grey sweatpants, and shoes, brown eyes looked at seemed rather confused.

"Whoah!" She skidded to a halt.

That... definitely was Tie.

"Uh... Hi?" Julia waved awkwardly, hiding her mixed emotions with a smile. "You- uh, you just appeared out of nowhere, I almost slammed into you!"

The man chuckled, "I saw." He said as he rubbed the back of his neck "I'm guessing this isn't my universe."

Julia raised a brow at him, another dimensional traveler? She smirked, "Heh, well... it seems like everyone can, nowadays." This is the second person to find her, but now she had seen what? Three different people? Can the boy with the cowboy hat travel as well?

Honestly, she won't be surprised.

"Julia? Are you talking with someone?" Gabriele called out, making Julia turn around.

"Yeah, just give me a few minutes!" She called back, she looked back at the man before who was looking at her in curiosity. "Sorry, I know a few others who can travel dimensions..." The badge seller, Her father, Tie, Julia wasn't entirely sure if Zephyr could... that always confused her.

"I've never seen you before, though" Julia stated, giving him a good look to make sure "yet something seems... familiar about you."

The man seemed to consider this as well, feeling the same way "I sense it, too..." he muttered.

He looked up sharply, almost alarmed at what he might have thought up. He studied her for a moment and then proceeded to say "wait, you're not from earth, are you?"

There are many realities out there, but just maybe, there is a chance they came from the same place.

"You know earth?!" Perhaps Julia was a little too excited to see someone from her era of time. "Are you from there, too!?" The man nodded at her.

She smiled and crossed her arms, "what country?"

He replied, "Canada; you?"

"Oh, I'm from the U.S." putting her hand on her hip and pointed out, "It's pretty cool to see some else from home." Besides Gabriele who's definitely a man out of his time.

"No kidding," he agreed with her "what makes it even funnier is if we both had amnesia when we first left."

Julia was amazed, "you can't be serious..." she was instantly reminded that she had was bashed in by floating debris when she and MoonJumper were travailing through the rift for the first time "you lost your memories, too?"

Julia wondered if he had taken a beating as much as she has during their adventure.

"Uh... yeah," he crossed his arms "seems like we have a similar story."

Julia nodded at him, relieved to know she wasn't the only one on an amnesiac journey like her own. Then, once again, Gabriele yelled out "Julia we shouldn't keep the children waiting!"

"Alright! I'll be right there!" Julia shouted back, she was so caught up talking with this man, the woman almost forgot.

Sighing, she turned back and shrugged "I wish I could stay and talk, but I'm really busy right now." Julia explained, "maybe we can talk again later?"

"Understandable, and maybe." He pointed out "but yeah, I should get back to my own world anyway." He was about to dismiss himself but stopped, looking at her "but before you go, though, I have one thing to warn you about."

The woman looked at him, curious about what he had to say. "What's the issue?" She asked.

"So, you're able to travel dimensions like me, yeah?" He asked.

Julia looked nervous, "yes..?" She lied, she hadn't quite 'learned' how to open portals, she just knows how to navigate with her motorbike across them. However, being a magnet for portals to open up around here is another thing. Or does her astral projection count as reality hopping?

"Long story... but you know that the universes are bound to collide soon, right?" The man inquired

Julia had a theory that something bad was happening, and she was there when the worlds started colliding first hand when she was making her way back to this place.

"Mhm." Julia nodded at him with a noise of confirmation.

"Well, this collision... this cross collapse or whatever you folks call it... needs to be stopped." He looked at her, eyes filled with a sense of duty to try and put end to this crazy behavior "if it isn't, it will be the end of the multiverse." He explained.

The doesn't sound good. Not good at all. Julia's eyes had been opened after hearing this, "what!?" The woman gasped.

Grimly, the man nodded.

"How do you even know all of this?" Julia asked, astounded. The only person she knew who would have this much information would be the badge seller... and she hadn't seen him in a long, long time.

Where was that twitchy pain in the side anyway?

"I have a very special friend. He knows the multiverse like no one else," He explained, "and he has a plan. We need to gather people with abilities like ours to help stop it."

Julia took a moment to look at her hands, her abilities... she could be a great asset for defense.

"So if you know any other people who can travel between dimensions at will, let them know when you see them." He ended his explanation.

Julia nodded at him, the woman has at least two people she can count on. The badge seller not being one of them.

"Alright, I definitely will." Julia stated, quickly casting a glance to the tree next to her, then back looked down at her feet "I Guess I should tell everyone..." Julia runs a hand under her hat to scratch her head.

"That's up to you." He responded, "now... we both have places to be."

I nodded at him, as much as I wanted to keep talking, people from alternate realities tend to not stick around for long. But they're from the same alternate reality, in a different reality that is completely separated from each other-

Julia now realized that this situation is incredibly crazy, and should not be thought upon it any further.

"It was nice talking with you..." Julia hummed, unsure how to continue "what's your name?" She eventually asked. She had been talking for while a realized she never did get a name from the man.

"Oh, I'm Markus," he answered, a small nod in greetings towards her "it's nice to meet you, Julia."

Julia smiled back, nodding as well "You too, Markus." She said as she was about to step away, she remembered that she should warn him about the uh... Doppler. Julia turned around and called out "One last thing... I accidentally let an evil shapeshifter lose in the multiverse, so... look out for them."

Markus chuckled, "Duly noted," he waved "see you later."

After that, Julia finally ran off, wondering why the man chuckled at her warning. Doppler was no joke- but then again it wouldn't matter since there's a high chance he'll never meet them.

Or escape from that little decorative vase.

"Zephyr you can come out from behind the trees now, he's gone." Julia stopped to called out, the continued to walk.

"You have some interesting people around you..." Zephyr said, floating beside her "how many travelers have the diamond child spoken with?"

"A few..." Julia smiled.

* * *

"Alright! We have our crew!" Bow cheered out once they were back on the ship. She looked around at the odd group and smiled. Julia, Zephyr, and Kero were her companions for this mission and it was rather surprising that she was able to get more than just Julia.

Probably because the woman always comes in a bundle package.

Bonnie giggled to herself at the fact that Julia is always being followed by someone. Whether it be her, Melody, or any of the others.

"Okay, while I'm off to make food for two since I'm pretty sure you guys-" she pointed at Kero and the jester "can't eat anymore; I'll be in the kitchen. Take this time to wonder about and give Julia some time to speak with the CEO..." Bonnie waved off, directing the woman to the big tv screen she was accustomed to seeing.

"Yaaay, more talking..." Julia mumbled, though, in all seriousness, she needed to know what the CEO wanted to talk, specifically, to her about.

"And he'll probably want to talk to her... alone." Bonnie also explained, turning to the two dolls. "So uh... go wait in the laundry room, I guess?"

"Laundry room...?" Zephyr asked, but Kero grabbed his hand and led him to the other room.

"I... got this..." he said, Kero did live on the ship for a while, so he knew some of the rooms.

Julia smiled, it was rather adorable watching Kero lead Zephyr. The height difference was what really hit her.

"Right then..." Julia muttered to herself, turning to the screen. "How do I call...?"

Julia nearly jumped out of her skin when the call started happening, knowing a man with the name 'CEO of Time', he'd always be on top of his namesake.

The woman was quite curious about what this person looked like, and when the call finally connected she was greeted by an old man with white hair and a beard the connects to it. Teal eyes, Julia was caught off guard by the fact she saw he had three. The third eye was located directly in the middle of his forehead.

He had a personality of a laid back kind of guy, even though the woman was sure he was some sort of important figure to Melody and Bonnie, he sure liked to drees... relaxed.

His suit was unbuttoned and you could see the white undershirt. Since he was sitting down at a desk, Julia couldn't see the rest of him, however, in the background, there were so many different types of hourglasses. Some were like the ones she had been collecting with her sister and some were a lot different in shapes. Not only that, but a few had names on them as well.

One that was right in front of the CEO was an hourglass with her name on it. Green, diamonds carved on a few support beams, and a golden like sand laid settled. This worried her since all the others behind the man were still moving.

"So, you're the impossible girl." The man spoke, he didn't have a gruff voice, but it did sound friendly. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Julia. Sorry I couldn't get in touch with you either-" he chuckled to himself and turned at a stack of papers "work has been rather... untamed as of late."

"That's alright, it's nice to finally meet the CEO Melody and Bonnie have been speaking of..." Julia smiled and loosely folded her arms.

"Please, call me Tim." The man waved off "but, you're probably wondering why I wanted to speak to you..."

Julia nodded at him, then took another glance at the hourglass with her name.

Tim noticed that she was perspective, even though he made sure it was obvious "Hmm... yes, you're looking at the reason." He scratched his beard humming, Tim picked up the green-colored wood hourglass with golden sand studying while he talked to Julia "you see, this hourglass appeared out of nowhere one day, started ticking down sand, It didn't have a lot, to begin with; then mysteriously vanished for a while."

He eyed the woman down, finally understanding why "Little Mel returns home to our backup planet, telling stories of a woman in a black suit who had aided her." He placed the hourglass down "said her name was Julia, and that so happened to be the name the anomaly hourglass had before it vanished."

"Huh, Anomaly... haven't been called that before," Julia mumbled.

"Probably not, but to here, you are the strangest anomaly I've ever seen." Tim motioned to the hourglass once again "because the hourglass appears once again, sand frozen, and word from my grandson says you've returned."

Julia paused for a moment, "wait, what do you mean the sand is frozen?"

"I mean, what I mean; frozen." The man flips the hourglass on the table with a thud and the sand was stuck to the roof. "When an hourglass reaches its end... it normally means the person has passed on. There will be a crack at the end shattering it so that it will never work again."

He leaned the hourglass further towards her "your hourglass just... stops working. Defying the flow of time, which I must say... rather impressive; it is still in perfect condition despite little nicks and burns marked into the wood."

The man smiled at her, thoroughly impressed by the stranger.

Julia however was completely confused. Burn marks, nicks, and scratches... it sounds like it's definitely tied to her. Though wasn't she dying? How could her hourglass just... not work? What could this mean?

"You seem rather confused, I don't blame you." Tim chuckled, looking at her with half-closed eyes "...I have a lot of work on my hands right now with more time anomalies popping up, but I'll definitely be keeping all eyes on you."

"But wait... why would you tell me all of this? I thought someone who can see time was not allowed to tell anyone of their situation?" Julia spoke up, understanding that this was not a normal situation, but it's still related to time shenanigans.

"Well..." Tim rubbed his head "simply because... you don't belong to this reality." He kept smiling at her "you don't abide by our laws of time. You are an anomaly after all." The man leaned in looking directly into her eyes "Julia, kiddo, you're probably feeling a little messed up."

Julia held the center of her chest and tensed up.

"Interactions with powerful outside forces can do that to a person," Tim noted. "Getting hit with one of our Time Pieces can cement it."

Was he aware of MoonJumper and her problems?

Tim coughed into his hand to grab Julia's attention "now, I don't want you to think too much of it; whatever is happening is definitely apart of your destiny." He announced, folding his hands and placing his chin on them "I'm still completely unsure what it is, but I can assure you that there's no escaping it."

Julia hummed "what happens, happens." She was already prepared for the worst.

Julia then looked up at him, a kind smile for this knowledge "thank you for letting me know." She said, "I have an idea of what's currently happening with me, but this is another thing to mull over with my friends."

Tim just nodded, "by the way, I wish you luck on your final mission." He said. "Bonnie and Melody will be coming home and put through an initiation for a bigger crew."

That caught Julia's attention "initiation...?"

"I'll let her be the one to tell you about that, then." He chuckled, he might have spilled some beans that weren't meant to be spilled yet. "Right then, I'll be getting back to work now. Time doesn't wait, and neither does this man, sadly." He mumbled sadly, proving that he's not very fond of the job.

Once the tv call cut, it was just Julia now standing alone. It felt rather... foreboding. Like the time she and Melody looked off at the burning world when Lynn took over.

"Maybe Bonnie could use some help..." Julia mumbled, trying to get away from the quiet.


	33. Bright light, Cat city

**(Chapter Thirty-Three: Bright light, Cat city)**

Julia had fumbled into the kitchen real quick, her thoughts almost made her hit the door on her way in. She knew Bonnie was making sandwiches or something, but she wasn't expecting the bowed child to be using the stove.

Bonnie, the hot-headed, gung ho child, to be calmly making a rice dish for their mission. She was exceptionally quick maneuvering around on the steps so that she could reach.

Bonnie quickly turned around when she noticed Julia and then turned back to see what she was doing, unfazed that the woman was looking at her with popped out eyes.

"Hey, Juli! Sorry, I uh- I was making sandwiches and then thought," she quickly tapped her finger to her chin "'man, some rice would be nice too!' And now I'm kind of here." She gestured to the fried rice with beef.

"I- wha-" Julia grabbed her head and swung her arms out "you can cook!?"

Bonnie chuckled at Julia's confusion "well, not everyone is a prodigy captain like Melody." She said, continuing to work "I only got the space gig because my parents were chefs on Melody's parent's ship."

"I'm... guessing... that's how you two met?" Julia inquired

"Yup! Been friends ever since! And before you ask, no, I'm not as skilled as my parents; the only hot dishes I know how to prepare are rice-based."

"Well That's clearly not true," Julia points out "you know how to cook beef-" she gestured to the meat that was getting cooked with the rice. She wasn't entirely sure if that counts, or if Julia should be afraid of the meat that was chopped into the rice.

Bonnie gave a thoughtful look as Julia backed out of the kitchen so she wouldn't get in the girl's way. "I'll be... uh, talking with Snatcher then."

"Alright! I'll be done soon, Promise!" Bonnie called out.

Julia exhaled a breath she didn't even know she was holding. That was definitely a surprise to see and was the last thing she would have thought Bonnie would be. "...A chef." She muttered to herself with wonder, then she thought Bonnie and Cc would be good friends.

Julia wondered if the two were able to hang out after the cruise incident.

While in her thinking, Julia found her way to Melody's room without hitting any walls thankfully. Once she glanced out the hallway window and passed the door, she looked into the room to find Melody fast asleep on her bed and Snatcher reading a book that Julia had seen many times before.

"I can't believe you still have that book." Julia quietly called out, making the specter look up surprised. "And here I thought we were making a dent in that dark heart of yours." She joked.

Snatcher scoffed, he closed the book as quietly as he could and looked at Julia "Well if it isn't the pumpkin child. Back so soon?" He asked.

"Only because we're on our last mission, you dumb purple noodle." She smirked at him, loosely crossing her arms.

Snatcher gazed at Melody for a moment then back at Julia as if he just realized something. Then he went back to his normal expression and gave Julia a look "so, what does that have to do with you talking to me?"

"Oh, nothing, if you don't want it to." The woman shook her head at him "though, there is a reason why I'm here. There's something I want to discuss with you quickly while the kid is asleep." Julia pulled the book out of her vest, then slid a page out from it and handed it to the ghost.

Snatcher grabbed hold of it and gave it a look over, he then raised a non-existent brow at her "what the heck is this for?" He asked.

"that there is a design for a new body. A backup body..." Julia pointed out "My contingency plan."

"For...?" He motioned for her to give out more information with his hand.

"Can't you feel it? I know you can." Julia whispered, looking at the ground "I haven't told MoonJumper yet, and I know he doesn't have the aptitude for soul magic like you... just control."

The large ghost froze when he heard and realized what she was saying, he felt it. It was a vague feeling, but it was there. Snatcher wasn't expecting that kind of dour tone or answer. After all this time he was trying to get rid of them... they were actually... leaving. In their own ways. Potentially for good.

"But that's why I'm asking this of you." Julia looked up at him, with a made-up mind. "I want you to make me this new body. I don't want to kick the bucket and leave someday... leave everything I worked hard to keep. I want to be with you guys."

"You... want to stay." Snatcher finished.

"You're sometimes infuriating, and you do stupid things." Julia looked away, holding herself "and I never actually wanted to be close to you after everything..." Snatcher gave her an undefinable looked "but thanks to that contract the kid highjacked from you... I find our bantering and fights to be... fun."

Snatcher was taken aback by that, he did have to admit, he loved making her mad.

"not only that... but... you're also apart of my family. You and MoonJumper... you're like my uncle." Julia looked back up at him "You're apart of that thing I want to keep holding onto."

Julia then held out the notebook to him. "This book has all my thoughts and stories in it, from how it all started to how my life has changed for the better..." Snatcher reached out to take it and looked at it. It read contingency plan on it, at the bottom, it says 'from Julia' and to a name he didn't quite recognize.

"Zephyr helped design that ribbon." She pointed out "its magic is tied to my life; when that ribbon becomes undone... I want you to find someone named 'the badge seller' he'll deliver that for me..."

"But... why give it to me? Why not deliver it now?" Snatcher asked quietly, looking at the green book.

"Well, you're good at hiding things." Julia smiled at him "and I don't want anyone to open that book. Not yet at least. Think of it like... a time capsule." The woman readjusted her hat and looked at him "and that only leaves your side when that ribbon opens... because there's a goodbye message in there somewhere."

"...When will you tell Moon?" He asked her still looking at the book.

Julia just sighed, she wasn't entirely sure if she should "as for MoonJumper... I've already yelled at him enough for his mistakes..."

"Do you... see yourself as a mistake?" The purple ghost asked her

"No! No... I don't." Julia smiled kindly "I don't see his course of action as a mistake. It was meant to happen, right? It's made me into me." She held her arms out. "And I'm happy with that. Happy I was able to meet all of you."

It was either be alone forever and be raised by people who never cared, or die with the ones who always do. To her it seemed like a fair trade-off, she got to live a full life, still living it!

"When I come back, I'm going to spend so much time with my family." She smiled and pointed out at Snatcher "and that means you too, big guy." She chuckled just as she was about to walk away "just wait for me, okay?"

At that moment, Snatcher reached out and grabbed her in a hug. It was sudden and it surprised Julia, though she didn't yelp or jump. She just stood there without words as he held her a little tighter.

"We don't speak about this to anyone. Got it?" He let go and spun her around to give her a stern gaze "or I'll... I'll-"

"You got it." She just patted his hand and finally walked out. Happy with completing one of her goals.

* * *

After her confrontation with the ghost, Julia had made her way to find out what exactly Kero and Zephyr have been up to. When she entered the door the led to the engine room, she stopped short in front of the laundry room.

Julia was surprised, shocked really, because in front of her wasn't what she expected to see. Kero and Zephyr, who both looked... alive turned to look at her.

The dark-skinned boy with adorable freckles peppering his face hopped in a hurry after Julia "Mama, Look! Look what uncle Zephyr did!" As he grabbed onto her.

"It's only a visual illusion..." Zephyr announced, making his way up "and it's Allen right now. Zephyr has given me some time to... take in the sights."

"Allen- this is an awfully realistic illusion," Julia said as she pushed down Kero's messy fluffed up hair. She was at a loss for words after that.

"That it may be, but we still don't feel anything just like before." He had a sad look as he monitored his hands and then his eye had an X shaped scar. "I wasn't sure I was able to do this until your boy, Kero, gave me the idea of a disguise."

Julia looked down at him with a questioning glance.

"It's true! We still don't know anything about this new place; what if they get scared of walking dolls? We gotta look less intimidating!" Kero held up his hands while he explained.

"Do you think we look less intimidating?" Allen asked Julia as the two adults stared at each other.

One adult was wearing magical robes and gold with a large scar, while the other adult was wearing mafia-related clothing and an eye patch.

"Hmm, what's your definition of 'not scary'?" She asked putting her hands together.

"Perhaps we could match then?" Allen, in a flash, changed to identical clothing, losing the gold jewelry and anything that seemed flashy. "We were quite curious to see how we looked in your attire-"

"Now we really look like we're in a group..." Julia smirked but shook her head.

"No good?" Allen deflated.

"No, no- you look good!" Julia quickly rose her hands "it's just, Now I'm not sure I should wear what I'm wearing." She said, "kero is right about not wanting to stand out."

"Perhaps we'll figure things out along the way," Allen said, not changing back to his original clothing.

"So you gonna change back or..?" Julia looked at him with a raised brow.

"Zephyr says he feel confident... I have to agree with him there." Allen said with a smile as he adjusted his glasses.

Everyone had met back in the main hub, Bonnie was all packed up and it seemed everyone was ready. All that was left to do was jump from the spaceship and head back down to their destination.

"You guys really ready?" Bonnie asked as she turned around to see everyone holding onto temporary umbrellas, nodding "Okay then! Here we go!"

With the group all heading off, Julia was the last to leave. She quickly gave a look back to see Snatcher wave, she smiled at him and finally left. The ghost kept waving back until the woman was gone and out of sight.

* * *

It was a city they arrived in, though the city seemed dead at this time of day, giving Subcon a run for its money. Perhaps it was only lively at night? It was possible that was the case. Newspapers blew in the cold wind, as the group kept scanning the area.

"Okay, readings had said to go underground..." Bonnie said, before looking at some papers.

Julia looked around, almost missing her city back home. It was an odd feeling seeing something so familiar in an uncanny way. "If it's underneath a city of this caliber, then there's a chance that there's a subway station nearby." She deduces with a hand to her chin.

It only took her a moment to feel the rumbling of something running underneath, Perhaps echoes of wheels of a track? Rushing over to find some sort of decline, Julia stopped to see a manhole with lights and an ice symbol she was all too familiar with. It played music all the while as she called everyone over.

"Wasn't expecting a manhole entrance at all; maybe a stairway or a ramp..." she scratched her head underneath her hat, feeling like she had forgotten something.

"Maybe it's a secret entrance?" Kero said, getting closer to it and hearing the music at a higher volume.

"Only one way to find out!" Bonnie smiled, taking charge, and slammed down with her equivalent of the ice hat. The manhole was open for the others as they shortly joined her before the cover sealed itself back up. Looked like it was definitely a one-way trip.

However they all found themselves dropping onto an area that had digital ticket booths, a railway map, and miscellaneous ads they couldn't read. It all looked so different.

Not only that but it seemed like there was an electric yellow gate blocking their path. Allen was the first to approach it, captivated but the odd thing. When he placed a hand on it, it made a blaring sound with the X in the middle turning red for a moment.

"Gah! What sorcery is this!? A barrier of some kind?" He backed away from it like a cat that got spooked by a garden hose.

"N-no, Zephyr..." Julia held back a laugh "it just a gate, though I was half expecting it to be electric for some reason..." she mumbled.

Bonnie yelled out "they have electric subway gates where you're from!?" She then smiled "that super crazy!"

Julia stuttered for a moment, she was trying to explain that wasn't actually what she meant "No- no! We just have a normal small gate that anyone can just jump over..."

Meanwhile, Kero looked at the strange but cute familiar rumba cleaning around, everyone else was chatting away about electricity and gate while just...

Accidentally found away over.

A yelp made Julia quickly turn around like a momma bear hearing her cub was in danger; she watched speechless as Kero was lunched over the gate and was successful on the other side.

"Kero are you okay!?" She yelled, looking past the security gate to see her son just shake off the surprise and smile.

"I'm okay!" He held a thumbs up.

Bonnie smiled at him, then looked back at the cat Roomba with an even more growing smile. Cat theme, she loved cats so much. She soon then followed the boy's actions and jumped over the gate with the help of the little fella.

Before anyone knew it she was right there next to Kero.

"So," Julia smiled "funny how I said jump over... right?"

"After you, dear sister," Allen said, motioning to the machine.

With a smirk, Julia was launched over to the others, and after that Allen joined them. The first obstacle cleared and probably a fine for not paying the gate fee, but it didn't seem like anyone cared.

The upper area didn't seem to have much, just a normal platform for trains to come and go. There was a food cart a vending machine and a few... cat-folk. It seems like cat people were in control of this area. Now Julia had seen everything, Birds, Seals, Cats, what other animals were there that walked and/or talked?

Bonnie had wandered over to the glowing line, she had no idea what it could mean, but Julia could understand enough with the symbols and yellow striped line on the floor.

"Bonnie, wait!" She called out as she watched the child stick her head out to see what was down the glowing blue road. Immediately getting pull back with a green string, Julia huffed as she yanked the girl away before a large cat pulling a train car came speeding by.

Not caring about almost get run over, Bonnie had stars in her eyes as she clapped excitedly in Julia's arms "ohmigosh!"

"Christ, Bonnie!" Julia looked at her, putting on a concerned smile "I hope you're not as much of a handful as Melody was when I first met her..."

"Sorry, sorry! I just got all excited!" She pointed with a smile "I mean, large cats pulling trains! Ah!" She gushed out at the cats.

"We might need to set some ground rules." Julia looked down at her as she was placed back down. Folding her arms she waited for everyone to gather around "we still don't know what's going on down here, but we do know cats roam about." She pointed out

"I distinctly remember cats being extremely unpredictable, so we shouldn't use anything to give them a reason to attack us." Looking at Allen, she stressed "use only passive magic, and away from prying eyes." She whispered as he nodded.

"Always stay in groups of two; don't get separated for too long if you do have to leave each other." She pointed out again looking at the two kids. "I want everyone to stay safe..."

"I believe everything will be fine," Allen said to her, placing a hand on her shoulder "I'll keep watching Bonnie if you wish to stay with your son."

Julia somberly smiled at him, she nodded her thanks to him.

"Now then, shall we be off?" He said with a confident smile, looking at the next train that passed by.

"How... if we don't have tickets?" Bonnie asked him.

"Hasn't Julia told you I'm a renowned bandit back in my time?" He folded his arms studying the trains "I may be a tower wizard, but I've trained hopped a few times with my lovely Delilah, rest her soul."

"Train hopped?" The bow child questioned, getting picked up by the man.

Julia immediately picked up Kero, understanding what was about to happen, but she just couldn't believe he was suggesting it "Allen you sure about this? What if we hit a tunnel that's too small?"

"Fret not, I'm sure a few of the felines have got around somehow without needing to pay a fee." Allen was sure of that "besides, cats are the sliest when it comes to sneaking."

He got ready for the next train, Julia as well but more nervous than he was.

"I still do think this is a good idea-" Julia tried to say before Allen yelled,

"Jump!"

The two jump up and grabbed hold of the roof of the train. Allen had more spring in his step than Julia, who had to use a barrier to get up a little higher. Once on top, the to rode for while aboard the train for quite sometime before needing to jump off.

They were now in an off room and it seemed the only way up was the cleaning bot dressed as a cat. Bouncing up, the two hopped onto another train and rode it for a while before hopping off again into another room.

However, the machine was nowhere near where it needed to be. Looking down at the sludge, Julia made a face.

"Yeah, I don't think so." She placed her son down and formed a stairway up. "Not get that on anyone."

"For the love of the sun, thank you..." Allen whispered.

The train-hopping continued until finally the four jumps onto what would be their last. The last train rolled longer than the rest and time seemed to slow down when they exited the tunnel into a bright shining area. It was all artificial lights from neon signs but it was breathtaking.

As they hopped off, more trains were heard overhead, the place was absolutely massive. Everyone was taking in the sights until Julia noticed Allen fall over with a thud.

"Allen? Allen?!" Julia whispered, hurrying over to him to make sure he was okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait everyone! I was having some massive demotivation, but here's a long chapter of the four getting into the subway! The next chapter will have the bastard cat lady and her little crew.


	34. It's just business

**(Chapter Thirty-Four: It's just business)**

MoonJumper stood before a dilapidated tower. Broken, crumbling, and forgotten. When he had escaped Vanessa's wrath for the first time, this is where he hid. Where he hid from Snatcher and every other resident the remained after the frost. He sighed, picking up a stone slab and rethinking everything he had done up to this point.

So much unnecessary pain he had caused just because he was angry about what happened to him. MoonJumper wasn't thinking, he shouldn't be mad- though he has all rights to be! But he should have thought of some other way to go about unleashing it.

Who would have thought one little girl could string so many people from his past together? To ease their pain he had caused...? To ease his own pain with them?

Angry, but he wasn't sure at what anymore, he threw the stone away. It knocked down another stone as they both thud loudly in the quiet empty area.

The puppeteer rested on the ground, breathing in heavily to stop his tears as he held his head with his hands. What was he to do now? It seemed his rage was the only thing that had given him a purpose, now he had Julia and no matter how many patches he seems to fix, more holes keep opening up between them.

Does she hate him now? Does she fully understand what kind of monster he was?

"My... how the mighty have fallen." Came a voice that broke the silence.

Quickly turning his head, he looked to see someone he never thought he'd see again. His puppet, a true puppet.

The badge seller stood, looking at him as he twitched and twisted. "It truly has been while; the moment you had reappeared, I had to keep myself hidden." The masked man said. "To say I was surprised to see you weren't hunting after me is an understatement."

"Funny... because I had thought you were lost for good." MoonJumper floated back up and looked at the puppet. Not with attitude or spite for getting away but pure curiosity "it seems you've developed a voice and a personality..."

"And an identity." The badge seller noted, "alongside a business too." He chuckled.

"You definitely were busy, I must say." MoonJumper turned away. "Why have you decided to appear before me now? Are you not afraid now? Not afraid that I might make you my vessel?"

"By now I've been studying you... no." The badge seller said, looking at him "you mean no more harm, I can clearly see this. You don't wish to anger your daughter any further."

He was right on that, MoonJumper didn't want Julia to drift apart any further than he thinks they have.

"Though, I have come to tell you that... when she returns from her final mission..." The badge seller continued to look at his former puppeteer "I plan on telling her the truth about me. I made a promise after all."

"I don't plan on stopping you, there's no doubt she finds out either way..." MoonJumper went back to resting on the ground and removed his coat to try and feel comfortable. "Honestly I'm surprised you haven't told her yet despite me."

The badge seller twitched and glitched again, the strain of being around places... being stretched through time and space really did take its toll. "...I wanted to feel human... for just a little while longer." He quietly said, but enough to where MoonJumper could still hear him. "I wanted to keep feeling like I was alive; Benjamin... that was the name I had given myself."

"Just because you were created by thread and needle, doesn't make you any-less alive..." MoonJumper said to him, realizing that his creation really has evolved with his magic "you've proven that. You stand before me with more than I actually gave you... thoughts and ideas..." MoonJumper went on "emotions, even though you try to hide them... and a sense of right and wrong."

The badge seller... Benjamin looked at his creator with an indistinguishable face. The best part about having a mask for a face.

"It was you... you kept an eye on Julia when I couldn't at the time." MoonJumper said with the realization "thank you."

"I tried to keep her away from you." Benjamin said, sitting down on a stone "but she was adamant about seeing you again. When she remembered you at the least."

MoonJumper was quiet, remembering how happy he and Julia both were. Now she's always worrying about his past messes that he had made.

"I do wish to tell you this, though." Benjamin grabbed Moon's attention "no matter how angry or frustrated Julia is towards you... she'll never truly hate you."

"How are you so certain...?" MoonJumper doubted him

"Because I've seen what she's like when she truly hates someone. Me and Gabriele both have." Benjamin pointed out to him "she has not raised a fist or thread at you; she has not attacked you despite your wrongdoing. Julia only wishes for everyone to get along."

"You were the man who decided to give her everything you had after all." The twitching man said before turning his eye to the sky.

Their moment was cut off, but definitely not forgotten when they looked to the heavens and saw a red sickly looking rift. Large in size and fractures of what was happening on the other side slowly played.

MoonJumper and Benjamin recognized one of the combatants that were fighting.

* * *

Julia shook Allen in her arms; the man went limp when he was exposed to the bright neon lights. With entering at such a speed she wouldn't be surprised if he were having an epilepsy attack. Though that couldn't be the case, he was a puppet after all! Julia will not be going into the thought of how this idea worked.

Meanwhile, Bonnie spotted a cat wearing a face mask carrying one of the timepieces she and her group needed, and when the cat spotted her looking at them, they panicked.

"Stop, thief!" Bonnie yelled as Kero worriedly chased after her remembering the rule of not being alone.

Julia, stupidly unaware of what was happening, looked intently at Allen when he finally stirred awake. Only to realize his open eye seemed to have a crazed look to them, then looked at her with a splitting smile. It sent a shiver down her spine.

"Allen is currently unavailable, Zephyr will take his place." He laughed "seems like the bright life was too much!"

"Oh, like you're any deferent when it comes to that..." Julia deadpanned at him.

Zephyr just laughed again, holding onto her as they got back up. He then inquired, smile miraculously fading from his face"...where are the children?"

Now the woman's smirk faded from her face as they both looked over to see the children chasing after a cat with a timepiece.

"I take my eyes off of them for a few moments!" Julia cried out as she hurried over to the kids, Zephyr close behind her.

She watched as Bonnie got frustrated and attacked the cat, making it relinquish the stolen property. Julia mentally screeched at this. So much for not being hostile.

With a victorious smile, Bonnie held onto the hourglass tightly. Kero inched closer to her after realizing that she angered a few other cats with the same face mask.

"Hey, that belongs to..." their threatening faces immediately melted when they saw the two adults approached the situation, kids they can handle, but two towering adults that looked like seasoned fighters scared them.

Realizing this, Bonnie stuck her tongue out at the group of cats while Kero grabbed hold of Julia.

"I think that, belongs to me." Another voice called out as a clawed hand reached in between Julia and Zephyr to grab at the timepiece. Everyone was startled by the large cat, not like the cats pulling the trains, but a tall bipedal feline with a fur coat. Like the actual clothing coat and not the typical fur animals have.

"Who do you four work for? The two of you seem to have a dress code." She eyed Julia and Zephyr.

Julia had forgotten that they were wearing the same outfit minus the ties being different colors. Zephyr's was his yellow while Julia kept her usual green.

Steeling herself, Julia steps up. This Cat didn't seem too different than the mafia boss she had grown so used to. "No one, ma'am. We're just picking up what is our's." She made sure not to give attitude, but enough force to prove she wasn't a pushover.

The cat chuckled, smirking at Julia then slowly glance at the hourglass before putting it away. "Well, I can't have you lot running around freely, not after one of your own have..." she trailed off to see the other cat pick up the fallen one "roughed up one of mine." She circled the four of them.

Bonnie immediately regretting what she had done, and Kero held onto Julia tighter. He was unknowingly glaring at the cat lady.

"Do you know how much that sets back my jewel business...?" She glared back at the squad. "So!" She smiled kindly, but Julia could tell it was a sickly sweet to hide her anger. "You'll all work for me now." She got up in the fedora-wearing woman's face, and Julia was doing her best to hold back a sneer.

It was just like working for Snatcher it seemed. Round two for being lackeys.

The tall cat then tossed the group a large wad of cash, which Julia, who had taken charge, caught. Her eyes bulged at the stack of hundred dollars bills. Stuttering. Even though it wasn't like the currency back home, she was still familiar with what dollars looked like.

But then again... it seems like pons would be worth more since they were literally diamonds in capsules.

"Come to my store. We have some business to discuss." The cat said, walking away behind the crowd of cats that work for her.

Unbeknownst to the entire people below, a person from above watched everything play out before vanishing.

* * *

The group all stood in a jewelry shop, Julia and Zephyr looked directly at the cat while Bonnie and Kero looked around despite not leaving their side. They were both too scared too.

The cat, who they haven't gotten the name of yet drummed her claw on the pedestal she stood at, studying the four of them. While the kids refused to look at her, the two humans before her; the female seemed to be holding back a frustrated look while the other one seemed unhinged.

'Quite the visitors.' She thought, then said "there's more of these, I'm sure. It looks like you all came down here on a mission." She folded her arms at the humans "some of you seem... talented. I pay you, and you bring me more. It's a simple arrangement."

"And if we refuse?" Julia asked, truly curious, but she knew the answer to this kind of thing.

"Then I'll personally off you myself." She said, looking at Julia. "My boys can handle the children, but you too look like you can really fight." She smiled viciously at them.

"Zephyr wishes to stab you," Zephyr stated but immediately got the side of his head smacked by Julia.

The cat raised an unamused brow at the two.

"Sorry- my brother is a little crazy." She glared at the mage "we are not stabbing anyone." She stressed at him.

"I should hope it stays that way." The cat threatened. She then swept back stray white hairs out of her face, "start looking by the yellow overpass. I'm sure you lot can find your way. Now get going..., and don't come back empty-handed."

With a nod, Julia starting to leave "come on, everyone." The woman called out.

Once everyone was out of that shop, the children let out a sigh while Julia placed her hands on her hips in thought while glaring at the floor. Not the first time receiving a death threat from someone, but Julia could clearly see the children slightly shaken from that.

"What do we do now...?" Bonnie, shoulders slumped. "If we can't get those hourglasses back..."

Shaking her hand a bit, the woman turned around to look at the child and whispered "we will get them back... we just need a plan."

Everyone looked at her for answers, but she clearly didn't have one yet.

"But for now... we'll just play along." Julia looked at the group, adjusting her hat while she looked around at the vast underground.

"Zephyr still says we should kill her." The mad jester muttered to the group. "End it while we still can."

Julia only sighed in frustration towards him, hand to the bridge of her nose trying to fight back the urge to hit him again. Not like it actually hurts him but still. It's not like he can just stop being himself.

"Where's the fun in the adventure is we just end it before it begins?" Julia held her hands out, pointing at everything "We'll just have to split up and go two ways if you want to end that badly."

There was silence among the group. It was his idea to tag along and Bonnie was the one who wanted to lead the mission in the first place.

"You want some experience, nows' the time to get some kiddo." Julia looked down at the bow child "take Zephyr and go see what you can find."

Putting her lips in a fine line, she nervously nodded her head, then looked at Zephyr who looked at her. "Come on... let's go."

"Zephyr, this will probably sound familiar to Allen but listen carefully: don't fire unless fired upon. Got it?" She looked at him with a glare "I don't want to hear the boss lady sending her goons after you because you were stab-happy."

It took him a moment but eventually, Zephyr nodded slowly, following Bonnie on her way.

When the two were out of sight, Julia sighed once more, not realizing just how stressed she was. Both she a Kero walked down the yellow tunnel holding hands. There were trash and currency littered about. A couple of cats here and there glued to their phones or just ordering something from the food cars. The ones that weren't doing something else were gawking at the two... well mostly at Julia.

"Mama... this place is huge. Will we actually find those things here...?" He asked her as they reached the end of the tunnel.

"We're gonna have to try." Julia just smiled down at him with reassurance.

"...what happens if Zephyr does... you know...?" Kero watched as a train passed by with his mother.

"Then we have to back him up." Julia said blankly, watched another train "he's family, we have to watch out for each other."

"...I definitely think you can win against the scary cat lady... because you're strong, mama," Kero said, with a soft smile.

Julia just chuckled at him, picking him up and placing him on her shoulder. "Hang on tight, bud." She said, climbing the largest scratching post she'd ever seen and waited for the next train to come by. It seems like train hopping is going to be a common thing for now.

Once they reached the end of that line, they hopped onto a platform and then to another train. Finally, they landed on another section and hopped down, only to find out it was a fountain. It was pretty, though more cats were starting to looking at them more due to their entrance and bypassing the train system.

"Do you think I should have changed...?" She asked her son, looking at the small area and another train passing by. Then looked up at a possible area they could go. "Maybe I should have worn something other than my usual suit." She muttered.

She'll get a better grasp of outfit-making soon, she'll definitely have a change of style. Not the hat though, that will always be her thing.

"Maybe there's a store that sells clothes... oh we should buy some souvenirs for Gabriele and Button!" Kero happily pointed out, "and grandpa too!"

Julia smiled at him even more, maybe a gift will soothe things over... she had been seeing MoonJumper less and less as of recently.

"Yeah... we should." Julia nodded, climbing up the moving train and hopping the wall. There were a few more food cars and food shops around here as well.

Julia wondered if cats here were the actual culinary folks of this planet... it's just so interesting.

There was also a yellow gate as well blocking their path to what the two would think would've been back where they started. Not even thinking about getting close, Julia wondered what was on the left side of them.

It was a long spacious walkway, with plants and posters. All seem to be advertising of some sort, in a language none of the two understood.

"Didn't even realize cats had their own language... do the others have native languages too?" Julia muttered to herself mostly.

"Hey! Are you the one they call Fedora?" A voice called, by the sound of it, it sounded like it belonged cat resident. It was a little deeper octave than the normal cats Julia had been hearing due to their loud conversation with one another.

When she turned around, she wasn't expecting to see a golden eye California spangled cat with a grey plaid hoodie. It was up covering their head preventing anyone from seeing their identity properly. More so, how did they know her other name?

"Who wants to know?" Julia coldly looked back, unsure if they were trying to start something.

"The cat named jack, that's me by the way." He placed his paws in his hoodie pocket, trying to act cool, but Julia can clearly see its an act. "I wanted to know if you're actually the real deal and not some bozo prancing around as a famous movie star."

"Bozo...?" Julia snared and whispered under her breath; who was this cat calling bozo?

"You look like her, but you clearly have the style all wrong." He pointed out, looking at her up and down "she has a long sleeve jacket, and she definitely didn't look like a pirate."

It then just clicked, the older 'movies' she and Melody stared in. This cat, Jack, clearly hadn't seen the newest release yet... "Sometimes I still can't believe I have fans..." Julia deadpanned, scratching at her own head, and turned around to walk away.

"Whoa, whoa! Hey!" Jack flailed about, walking a little closer to them in the process "where are you going!?" His cool demeanor broke into a panic.

"Listen, kid, I'm not gonna sit here and argue with you that I'm me." Julia pointed to herself, "especially not in front of my son. Either you stop insulting my style and tell me what you want. Or you leave." The woman folded her arms "it's that simple and I'm in no mood to get mad now."

"Holy carp, you really are her." He breathed out. A ghost of a smile stretching across his feline face.

Julia was just at a loss for words, completely confused, and she was just half tempted to just blip away...

Her gold charm is missing. Julia left one of her charms at home; she can't teleport away. Julia forgot to equip her charm Allen gave her.

Taking in a deep breath, the woman tried to calm down, but kero could feel her anxiety even without their bond.

"It's going to be okay, mama..." he patted the side of her head.

"Look, look, look... look-" Jack tried to continue his sentence with the help of hand movements but he couldn't get past the first part "I- I'm a huge fan, I'm sorry- I didn't mean..!" He inhaled and exhaled "this is the best day ever." He said holding his head.

"Fedora, I need yours help!" He finally said, holding his paws out to her. "Your help, gosh dang it..." he whispered.

"Hey! You shut up!" Kero called out surprisingly, snapping both Julia and the frantic cat out of their own worlds. "A lot of stuff has happened, you need to stop getting my mom all stressed out!"

Julia let out a sigh, patting her boy on the hand that was still on the side of her head.

"I- uh... sorry." Jack lowered his head

* * *

Putting the search on hold for a bit, the least Julia could do was hear out what the cat wanted to say, it not like he just started following them when she clearly told him to leave them alone or anything. They sat down on the side of a wall, far away from prying ears, looking off at all the trains rolling by; what train she'll have to take to get a yellow pass, and what way she needed to go to find the hourglass.

In the meantime Jack sat with her, giddy out of his mind "I really can't believe it you..." he stated one last time before clearing his throat "okay, okay... so... the thing I need your help with is actually serious." Jack pointed out turning his head to her.

"It's not an autograph or a picture is it?" Julia slumped her chin on her hand that was propped on her knees.

"I mean- I'd like one, but n-no." He twiddled his fingers together with anxiety "I saw how you stood up to the empress... I need someone like that to lead my gang of cats... to boost morale too."

Julia just gave him a look, "how old are you?" She asked him, rather confused still.

"Sixteen" he then quickly added, "in human years- I'm sixteen in human years."

"And you have a gang...?" The woman inquired while Kero turned his head to look at the cat.

"I... no it's..." Jack somberly lowered his head "I was my older brother's before..." he paused then continued "you see, the metro used to be such an open kind place... we never saw ourselves like... like them. We protected this place from cats like them."

"But one day, the Empress showed up, and everything started to change. Nobody really notices because they're either in their phones or... being taken out." Jack explained looking at her "the debt many cats have are high because of her, and when they can't pay they work for her... and when they work for her. She can do whatever she wants."

"What happened to your brother...?" Julia rested her hands at her sides now, almost not wanting to know.

"The Empress and her goons... that's what." He clenched his hood, wanting to feel something get crushed under his hands "and the worst part is... we don't even have proof to take into the cops... I'm pretty sure half are spies too."

"Proof, huh...?" Julia mulled over what the cat was saying.

So there was actual death happening here, and no one is either brave enough or has the means to prove it. It really does change the situation, but then again... all the missions she has done for Melody had a high risk to them.

"And you want me as moral... and... a leader? This group is rightfully yours and you're giving up your leadership to a total stranger." Julia looked at him, but he looked away. "No. I won't be the new leader. I have enough problems right now..."

"We could help you look for whatever it is you're looking for!" Jack stopped her from trying to get up "you- you can be my tactician instead!" He pleads "you don't have to be the leader! Please... me and the other are big fans... and you being around would make us happy."

"How do you even know I'm good at fighting or tactics at all?" Julia looked down at him as he held onto her leg "I'm a movie star, I act. Well.. ex-movie star. Not in the business anymore."

"What!?" He cried out, looking up at her. Jack couldn't believe he heard that. Fedora not being an actor anymore.

"Look, I'm sorry. I really am. But you need to calm down and let go of my leg..." Julia strained "you're clawing me in your panic-"

"Ah!" Jack quickly let go. "Sorry- sorry!"

Julia let out a sigh, looking at her pant leg, it definitely broke through the fabric and her skin. But she was familiar with cats, they do that. Not even on purpose. She placed a hand on his head to let him know everything was alright.

"Look, just... let me

Think about it, and let me tell the others before we start making anything solid." She said, looking down at the boy who was doing his best to keep it together.

Jack was definitely an emotional wreck. Trying to play things cool to make it seem like things were alright, but really... not so much. Why he even decided to go to her for help is beyond her. Technically she can help him... but in doing so, Julia will more than likely insight the wrath of the Empress he's so afraid of.

Which was something she didn't want.

She didn't want to put Kero or Bonnie in any kind of danger she was so familiar with. She didn't want Zephyr to go back and rampage like he used to do.

"Just... let me think." She said. It was what she was good at. Though making the right choice was still to be determined.

With a sniffle and a nod, Jack pulled further away. Breathing in and out to recomposes himself. "I... If you ever decide on anything... you can meet me at the green section of the metro." He looked up at her, the hood still on his head "just call out for some playing cards and my boys will find you." He softly chuckled.

"Get it... becomes my name is Jack...? Yeah..." he muttered awkwardly, then eventually walked away.

Julia cracked a small smile but as fast as it was there it was gone. Maybe she shouldn't have been so forward with him. Given his situation.

With a sigh, Julia looked to her son. "I'm sorry you had to see that, bud."

Kero shook his head, "no... it's okay. But I'm not sure what to say..."

"Yeah... me neither." Julia sat back down to take apart what had been unloaded on her. "Me neither."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey! long chapter and stuff are starting to hit hard! The dark story of the metro begins and so does my new metro cat named Jack. I will warn you all again that things will be getting darker from here with mentions of death murder and possible emotional wrecks. Okay, I'm just rambling, but murder and death is always a thing here. It's the mafia, boys.


End file.
